Lucky Defense
by Daemon McRae
Summary: As a new student transfers in to Ryouo High, rivalries will be formed, antagonists will make their appearance, and emotional highs will be reached in new and interesting ways. Complimentary OC warning. DISCONTINUED
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Yay, another fan fiction to work on! This is one I've been wanting to do for awhile, but never really got down to it. However, reading a story called A Second Chance by nukersjsr. His main character, Kaito Yasuhito (sp?), was a major inspiration for me finally writing a fanfic with my own OC's. Don't worry, nuke, I'm not stealing your plot. You just helped me work up the nerve to write this story.

Chapter 1: Bulwark Defense

Ryouo Academy was a decidedly more uneventful place then the newest student had hoped. Ryuosen Ryuuko had expected a higher-class academy to have fierce competitions, and be loaded with students of such skill that every day would be an adventure or a contest of wills. _No such luck,_ he thought to himself, staring lazily around the classroom. He was half-heartedly listening to Kuroi-sensei's lecture, but didn't really have any interest. His grades were good enough that his parents never bothered him, although his mother would occasionally bug him about how long he kept his hair. Black, and not quite long enough to fashion a decent ponytail with, but long enough that it hit his shoulders, he kept it slightly disheveled, so that it fell around his face and gave his features a slightly edgy frame

Ryuuko Ryousen was the kind of person who became bored easily. He was also a boy of few, but significant flaws, one of which being a short attention span. As he looked around the room with a glazed look in his eyes, his stare settled on the back of the head of a short, blue-haired girl who looked ready to fall asleep. Or maybe she already had, he couldn't tell, not being able to see her face. He knew she was an anime fan, and played some video games, but hadn't learned much about her. He thought it might be interesting to talk to her later; they shared some of the same hobbies

Soon losing interest, he shifted his attention to the other corner, where a girl with bright pink hair sat attentively, occasionally adjusting her glasses. Her name he knew- she was Miyuki Takara, the closest thing this school had to an idol. She had a decent enough figure, and was quite a nice person. However, Ryuuko didn't find her that interesting. Quite and complacent didn't really appeal to him.

So, he looked for more things to stare at. Looking around the classroom, he noticed a few other attractive girls, including a somewhat cutesy purple-haired girl with a yellow headband, who he vaguely remembered had a twin sister.

"Ryuosen!" Ryuuko heard his name ring throughout the classroom, and he flinched. He noticed, out of the corner of his eye, the blue-haired girl twitch violently in her seat. He looked up, his eyes half-closed, and saw Kuroi-sensei standing directly above him, grinning menacingly, and for some reason, with her eyes closed.

"Yes?" he asked, not really paying attention.

"What do you think is more important right now? Listening to this lecture that I may or may not test you on, or staring at the pretty girls in the class?"

"Shouldn't someone who qualifies as a teacher already know the answer to such a simple question?" he responded, not thinking.

A few moments later, he found himself standing on the hall, holding two buckets of water, with a large bump on his head. "I thug corporal punishment was banned," he said to himself. His discipline was short lived, however, as the bell rung soon after, and the classrooms dispersed for lunch. He decided to take his time returning the buckets to the janitorial closet, and dumping the water out. He had packed his bento box himself, and hadn't put in anything really special. He couldn't afford to: there wasn't a lot of money to work with this month.

Trudging his way back into the classroom, less for being tired and more for the splitting headache Kuroi's fist of discipline had given him.

Walking into the room, he saw Miyuki sitting with the other two girls he'd noticed, plus a girl with long purple hair that he assumed to be the other twin. He figured they must eat together constantly, due to the level of familiarity within their conversation.

Not knowing them very well, and only having started attending Ryouo a week or two earlier, Ryuuko's disappointment in how few of his (albeit extraordinary) expectations had left him with little to no desire to interact with anyone new. The headache slowly progressing to a migraine didn't help He assumed that his discomfort combined with his constant tiredness wasn't helping.

He sat down at his desk and pulled out his lunch, steadily progressing through his lunch, when he heard the volume in the room increase. Normally, this wouldn't bother him, but migraines are funny things. For those of you who have never had one, imagine that your leg had fallen asleep. Then imagine how much it hurts waiting for it to wake up fully, where even moving it slightly is unbearable. Now relocate that pain to your head, and make it sensitive to light and sound. SO he decided to find the source of the disturbance, and quell it.

Looking up, he realized very quickly what the issue was. Standing around the blue-haired girl and her friends were a group of ill-tempered looking girls. He couldn't here much from where he was sitting, but one of them had a very shrill voice; he surmised that she must be the source of his suffering.

Standing up quietly, and giving himself time to compose, so that he didn't offend anyone by saying something without thinking -again- he walked up to the group, and started, "Excuse me, what are-"

"You agree with me, don't you?" the girl with the shrill voice said, cutting him off. He paused, taken aback, and gave her a quick once-over. She was tall, for a girl, about his height, with hair longer than his, done straight back in a deep shade of red that made Ryuuko think she'd be better as pissing off bulls at the rode than anything else.

"About what?" he asked curiously. He figured they were arguing about something trivial that all women expect men to agree with them on, and prepared an automatic response.

"That being an otaku is a waste of time, and people with such filthy interests shouldn't show themselves in public," she said smugly, an air of superiority hanging about her like a gaudy veil.

"Su- wait, what?" he asked, the full sentence clicking with him mid-word.

"You heard me! People like this-" she pointed down at the blue-haired girl, who, upon closer inspection, Ryuuko found to be quite cute, in a strange, eccentric sort of way, "-should be cast out of schools like this, and be left to the d-rank academies, or home schooled! No doubt by an equally messed up set of parents," she scoffed.

Ryuuko blinked a few times, then glanced from the red-haired girl, to the smaller 'otaku', who was sporting a look that was a heart-wrenching mixture of hatred and sadness, tears dripping down her face. Her friends looked livid; but before he, or they, could respond, she started yelling at her aggressor. "How dare you ridicule me like that? What kind of person are you? So I have something that I'm passionate about, a lot of people are like me!"

The antagonistic girl opened her mouth to speak, but Ryuuko cut her off. "What the hell kind of person are you? What twisted, self-serving logic would make you think that you're better than anybody else, or give you the right to judge someone because of what they like?" Her mouth hung open, having not closed it the entire time he had yelled at her. "And what would make you think that it's ok to dictate what someone is and isn't allowed to do? If anything, it's people like you that shouldn't be allowed out of their homes, just so the rest of us can live in peace!"

At that point, the blue haired girl looked much less upset, and more so surprised, as the girl that had come over to harass her looked ready to cry.

"So do us all a favor, and stop talking, because thanks to your dog-call of a voice, my migraine has nearly tripled in size, not to mention all the blood rushing to my head for how pissed off I am," he finished, growling.

The girl said nothing, simply huffed, turned, and walked away. The other two girls, one with shorter, green hair, and large glasses, and a shorter girl with spiky orange hair, just glared daggers at him, and walked away. At that point, with no one to vent his frustration at, he realized that yelling may have been a very bad idea. His head throbbed in pain as his migraine spun out of control, his vision dimmed, so he sat down in the first chair he could find, before he passed out. It didn't take long.

As Ryuuko returned to consciousness, he noticed a few things had changed since he was last awake. The first thing being that he was lying down. The second was an odd, clinical smell.

The third, he discovered upon opening his eyes, was a girl with bright green eyes and long blue hair only inches from his face.

"Don't tell me this is one of those cheap romance scenes in anime where you were debating whether or not to kiss me in my sleep," he said, groaning heavily as he sat up. "Those scenes are so overdone, and they never go through with it."

Shy just gave him a weird look as she returned to her chair. "You don't have anywhere near as cute a face when you're sleeping as my Kagamin," she noted, giving him an appraising look.

"Well tell your Kagamin that I'm sorry I don't sleep up to her standards," he snapped, his head still throbbing. He sighed heavily. "Look, I'm sorry I'm so bitchy, it's just-"

"That time of the month?" she joked.

He choked on his next few words, caught off guard. He looked at her quickly, then laughed. "No, not that. I haven't gotten much sleep since I moved, and Kuroi hitting me on the head as hard as she did, didn't help. Not to mention that girl's voice could shatter glass. God, she pissed me off."

"I could tell. Why did you go off on her like that?"

"Like I said, I'm bitchy when I'm in pain."

"But if you already had a headache when you walked up to us, why didn't you start yelling from the start?" she asked, tilting her head.

"Because me yelling would make it worse. But what she was saying about you got me so worked up that I forgot that little fact. I hate people who judge others based on such petty things," he explained. He noticed some meds and a cup of water on a small table near his bed, with a note that said _Take upon waking_.

She gave him a coy look. "Are you sure it wasn't just because you wanted to come to the rescue of a cute little girl in despair?"

"Nah, I'd decided to yell at her _before_ I noticed how cute you were," he shrugged. His eyes widened, as his habit of talking before thinking kicked in, and he looked up from the note to see her grinning enthusiastically. He stared at her for a second.

"Good to know," she said. "So what's your name?"

"Ryuuko," he answered. Apparently this girl took things in stride pretty well. "Ryuuko Ryuosen."

"I remember your introduction," she told him. "You looked disappointed that there were mostly normal people in the class."

"There's nothing normal about you, Konata," said a snide voice from the doorway of the nurses' office. Ryuuko looked up to see the girl with long, purple twin tails standing at the doorframe.

"Kagamin!" Konata yelled, then bounced out of the chair, and caught her in a hug. The taller girl looked startles, but smiled, giving her a soft bop on the head.

"So you're Kagami, huh?" he asked, smirking. She stared at him, wide-eyed.

"What has she been telling you?" she asked, with a shake in her voice.

He just grinned, stood up from the bed, and got down on his knees, kneeling before her with his hands on the ground. "I apologize, great Kagami-sama, for I can not live up to your expectations in the mystical art of sleeping."

Kagami looked thoroughly confused, while Konata laughed heartily.

After school, he decided to wait up at the end of classes to talk to the group of girls Konata had been hanging out with. He spotted them coming down the hall as a group, and stopped them. "Hey, girls, I just wanted to say-"

But Konata interrupted him. Leaping forward, and clutching his arm, she told the rest of the group, "This is that guy from lunch that stood up for me!" she proclaimed. He felt his face get warm.

"Um, I just wanted to apologize for that. I didn't mean to lose my temper, sorry if I scared you guys," he added sheepishly. He had honestly just expected to apologize and walk away, now he was being held in place.

Miyuki just smiled at him. "Well, we appreciate you taking a stand for our Konata-san." She smiled warmly at him. She may be the quite, intelligent type that he normally didn't go for, but she was hot.

"Um, aside from Konata-san here, I don't think I've introduced myself to any of you," he said, pulling his arm free from the small otaku's grasp, and bowed. "My name is Ryuuko Ryuosen. I just moved to this prefecture a couple of weeks ago, and don't really know anyone here, so I'm glad I got to meet you."

Miyuki smiled. "Nice to meet you. I'm Takara Miyuki."

The girl with purple hair and a yellow ribbon smiles slightly, and looked a little flustered. "I-I'm Tsukasa Hiiragi. Nice to meet you."

Kagami raised an eyebrow at her sister. "Tsukasa, he's a guy, not an alien." She sighed. "I'm Hiiragi Kagami. Good to see you're doing better."

He laughed slightly. "Thanks. And you're right, I'm not an alien. I'd kinda like to be an Esper, though," he mused. The reactions were varied. Miyuki looked slightly confused, Tsukasa giggled, and Kagami face palmed.

"Oh, god, not another one," the twin tail girl moaned.

"Another one? What, do you guys have a Brigade chief already?" He felt Konata grip his arm again, and he looked down to see a bright smile, and sparkling green eyes.

"You have to meet my friends!" she exclaimed. "The otaku hordes will prosper greatly from this new addition!"

"Maybe later, right now I have to get home. My neighbor's really noisy late at night, which is why I haven't gotten much sleep, so I try and sleep in the afternoons, and use my nights to do homework. Maybe later, after I've had time to settle into a good sleep schedule. Either way, I should get going. Thanks for not flipping out on me," he added with a chuckle.

Konata relaxed her grip on his arm, and he walked off, waving behind him. "Bye, Ryuukyon!"

Ryuuko face vaulted, got back up, and turned around. He looked ready to say something, then decided against it. With a half smile, he waved goodbye again, and made his way down the stairs.

That evening, in his apartment, after he had logged in some much needed sleep, Ryuuko called up his family in Hokkaido. The phone rang a couple of times, then a deep, masculine voice ripe with discipline answered. "Greetings, Ryuosen residence."

"Hi, dad. It's Ryuuko."

The line paused for a second, then his father responded, "Ryuu-kun! How are you? How's Ryouo Academy? Have you made any new friends? Do you have a girlfriend yet? How's everything?" All of the masculine pretense in the man's voice had been washed away with fatherly concern.

"I'm good, dad. I'm just making dinner. Today was weird, though…" and he went into detail on the events at lunch and afterwards.

"You yelled at a girl? How could you, son? You know we Ryuosens have always favored chivalry s the better part of valor!" The masculine tones had returned, scolding his son with deep tones.

Ryuuko explained exactly what the taller redhead had said to Konata, and his defense of his new 'friend'. His father took some time to consider this- he could practically hear the old man scratching his chin. "Well son, I do not approve of your tactics, but certain measures must be taken to defend the fairer species."

"Yes, dad."

"Now, let me put your mother on the phone, she wants to talk to you."

"No dad! Waitwaitwaitwait-"

"Hello, Ryuu-kun! Have you cut your hair yet?" A sweet, feminine voice rang over the phone.

Ryuuko sighed. "No, mom." He sat down on the couch- it was going to be a long night.

Konata had gone over to Hyori's house after school, to help with a new doujin project the young mangaka had been working on. "So, Hiyori, when are you doing your next H-book?" Konata asked non-chalantly.

The meganekko spluttered a bit. "Wh-wha-Konata-sempai! You know I don't like talking about those! I asked you over to help me with a fantasy setting, not porn!"

The blue-haired otaku laughed. "It's just so much fun to tease you, Hiyori-chan. And don't worry, I don't think you'll be the focus of my teasing for long."

Tamura raised an eyebrow. "Why's that?"

Konata looked like she wanted to hold this information in for dramatic suspense, but was unsuccessful. "I think I may have had a flag trigger today!"

Her otaku-apprentice's response was much more intense than she had predicted. Almost immediately, Hiyori was inches from her face. "You must tell me about it, sempai! Any hope of romance for one of us is hope for us all!"

Konata was taken aback by her response, but couldn't help but comply. "Ok, here's what happened…"

Ryuuko had never been happier to see a Friday afternoon. With his migraine completely cleared, and the surprisingly dull and boring classes of his new high school over and done with, he had an entire two and a half days to kill.

The problem was, being so new to the area, he had no idea how to go about doing that. Except…

As the last bell rang, and the students made their departing bows, before anyone could so much as turn to the person next to them to ask the staple "So what are you doing this weekend?", Ryuuko had snatched his bag, thrown the door open, and torn his way down the halls to the library.

Konata and Tsukasa glanced at each other. "What do you suppose that was about?" Tsukasa asked, tilting her head. Konata put her hand to her chin in thought, as Miyuki joined them.

"Perhaps he's eager to get to the library," Miyuki-san suggested.

Konata looked at her, and laughed. "Miyuki-san, your sense of innocence is so MOE!"

Ryuuko wasted no time reserving a computer, and tearing through search engines to find his goals. Checking his bank account first, (his parents had given him this month's expense money, plus "a little extra to use on the ladies," as his dad had put it, he made a quick transfer, setting aside his monthly funds, plus some extra, into his saving, to prevent overspending on his idea. Only afterwards, he had noticed how _much extra they had put in._

Apparently, his father's dojo was doing quite well.

His mother being a lawyer may have something to do with it, too.

Satisfied with his budget, he began researching bus routes and hotels. Digging through transit sites and page after page of hotel bookings, he settled on a budget one room, and had printed out the address and the necessary bus routes. The only thing left was…

After a few minutes of printing, research, and more printing, Ryuuko found what he was looking for. "YES!" he cheered valiantly. The librarian didn't even bother to hush him, she just kicked him out.

Having been shoved into the hall, but permitted to take his papers, he decided to head for home, to prepare for tomorrow. It was his first school weekend by himself, and he was going to enjoy himself thoroughly. Plus, all of the shopping he intended to do would give him plenty to work with for quite awhile, to keep him from being bored.

Having accomplished everything he needed before he went home, he stashed his research into his bag, and headed out the door.

At the train station, he met up with some familiar faces: Konata and Kagami were waiting at the platform for the last bus home. Konata had quite a few bags with her, while Kagami held one, with little in it. "So what are you guys doing here?"

Konata and Kagami acknowledged him, and Kagami answered, "Konata wanted to drop by Gamers… again."

"A regular customer, I see," Ryuuko grinned. "I do all my shopping online. It's more fun, and a great time-killer. Plus, it's so convenient to have it sent to your house. I'm going to miss doing that as often as I used to. I might have to get a part-time job soon, to keep up with my hobbies."

"I know the feeling, Ryuukyon, I did the same thing," she explained.

"You're not going to stop calling me that, are you?" he sighed.

Kagami laughed. "Don't expect her to drop it anytime soon. Izumis have a way of pinning you with a nickname whether you want to or not."

Ryuuko grinned. "Izumi-san, huh?"

Konata looked hesitant. "R-Ryuukyon, what're you planning?"

"Oh, nothing. Anyway, what are you guys doing for your weekend?" he asked, still grinning.

"Nothing much. Since spring's almost here, my family may be doing a big clean-up soon. I might suggest that they get it out of the way sooner than later," Kagami mused.

Konata looked dissatisfied. "Kagamin, you should put stuff like that off as long as possible!"

Ryuuko nodded. "She's right. If you wait longer to do the cleaning, it will have a greater effect. If you do it now, then by the time spring rolls around, the house might just get as dirty as when you started. Now, if you wait till spring starts officially, then you stand a better chance of it looking the way you want when people who usually come to visit that time of year actually arrive."

Kagami nodded, "You do have a point, there. And I don't necessarily want to volunteer cleaning the house."

"No, no, Kagamin, that's not it at all!" Konata argued. "There's no point in cleaning the house so thoroughly at all, if it's just getting dirty again, you should just ignore the cleaning completely!"

Ryuuko raised an eyebrow at the midget., then noticed the train pulling up. "Ok, you guys, train's here."

The ride itself was uneventful, as they talked about various subjects, including continuing the debate on cleaning. But as Ryuuko's stop came up, Konata asked him, "You never told us what you were doing this weekend, what are your plans?"

He gave them a mischievous grin. "Nothing much, just spending the weekend in Shibuya."

Konata and Kagami's mouths hung open, as the door opened for him to get off at his stop.

"See you Monday, Izumiya-chan!" he said, laughter in his voice as he hopped onto the platform.

Konata just stared out the window at him. Returning to her seat, she set her chin in her hand in deep contemplation. Kagami stared over at her friend. "Konata?" she asked quietly.

She sat silently for a moment, then nodded knowledgeably. "I have found a worthy rival!" she proclaimed, her hands on her hips.

Kagami just shook her head. "Why can't I ever meet normal people?"

Author's Note: Well, here's another story started. Thanks for reading. Oh, and I'm going to have a tiny contest to see who can guess Ryuuko's neighbor first. Submit your guesses in a review: winner gets a commissioned one-shot, guaranteed at least 5000 words.

Have fun! And look forward to future chapters.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: I hate hate haters.

Chapter 2: Random Encounters

"You're not spending the weekend in Shibuya," Ryuuko's father told him flatly. "I sent you that money so that you could start dating, taking girls out to nice places, and continue the family line." His voice was stern and straightforward.

"So, basically, you're sponsoring my sex life," Ryuuko determined. "That's… that's a new kind of messed up, dad. I quite literally do not have words to adequately describe whatever emotion it is that is rolling around in my brain." He glanced at the phone, holding it away for a second like it would explode, then put it back to his ear.

"Well, son. You're not getting any younger-"

"I'm seventeen!"

"-and I was sixteen when I first met your mother, it was-"

"Dad! Dad, please not the cherry blossom story again, ok? I'll use it for dating, I promise." Then a brilliant plan hatched within his head. "What if I went to Shibuya- hear me out on this- and took a girl with me?"

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "I can see where you think that would be a good idea, and I partially agree, but no. Especially if it would be a first date. If you want to go to Shibuya, get a part-time job and save up for a trip. Say, during Golden Week."

Ryuuko rolled this thought around in his head for a bit. "Deal. Hey, dad?"

"Yes?"

"What kind of place did you take mom on your first date?" Ryuuko asked, hoping for some good advice, but not expecting much. His parents were very eccentric people.

"Why, we went skydiving. Why, do you think you know someone who'd like that?"

"…No, dad. No I doesn't," He said, rolling his eyes.

With his plans for the weekend shot down like a bad fandub, Ryuuko's overwhelming excitement had crashed into sheer boredom. And he had crashed hard. Laying on the floor of his apartment complex, he stared at his TV, then at his video game systems, then at the kitchen, then at his bedroom. So many things he _could_ do, but they'd all require him to focus for more than twenty minutes. And Ryuuko was well aware that _wasn't _going to happen. He turned on the TV and switched to some basic cable, hoping to find a TV show he could blank out on.

Halfway through an episode of some creepy kids cartoon, he found his inspiration. From a cheap walk cycle, nonetheless. He would go for a walk.

"It does give the illusion of the plot moving forward," he told himself, getting up and turning off the TV. He threw on a simple outfit of a white opened button-down over a black wife-beater, black slacks, and the shoes from his uniform. He topped it off with a black cadet hat his older brother had given him on one of his vacations back from America (He had started dating an American exchange student in high school, and followed her back to the states.)

Grabbing his wallet and keys, locking the door behind him, he made his way down the few flights of stairs his complex had, and started off in a random direction. After a few dozen blocks of walking aimlessly, he found himself at the train station, where he purchased next month's train pass. "Might as well do some shopping while I'm out. I'm short on food," he thought to himself. Stepping on the train, he eased himself into a seat in the back, and soon fell asleep.

A few seats down from where Ryuuko had dozed off, a small, red-haired girl sat leaning against a taller girl with shorter green hair. "Minami-chan?" the shorter one asked. The green haired girl looked down at her.

"Yes?"

"Do you know that boy?" she asked, pointing at the black haired teen in the back. "He looks like a delinquent! See how long his hair is?"

Minami gave the guy a once-over, eying him suspiciously. "Don't worry, Yutaka," she consoled her friend. "I won't let him try anything."

Yutaka smiled, comforted by the presence of her protector. Leaning into her shoulder, she said quietly, "Thank you, Minami-chan." She was soon asleep.

Ryuuko was not the kind of person who believed in coincidences. The fact that his cell phone rang minutes before his stop to go grocery shopping, he attributed as a gift from the gods for doing something decent at some point. Running into the red-haired girl and her friends as soon as he stepped off the train, he chalked up to the Gods having a sense of humor.

Stepping down onto the platform, he did his best to ease himself around the crowd, having spotted them talking off to the side. He had gotten halfway to the turnstiles, from which point the could sprint away, before he heard a yell in that horrible, migraine inducing high pitch. "You, there! Stop!"

Knowing that running the hell away and vaulting over the turnstiles would most likely get him detained, if not arrested. So he decided to turn and face the music. As terrifying, shrewd and out of pitch as it may have been. So he turned to face the girl and her accomplices. "What's up, people?"

His adversary stopped a mere foot or two from his face. "You have a lot to answer for, you egotistical piece of work! How dare you treat ME, off all people, with such disrespect!" she screamed at him, her cronies nodding in approval.

"Wow, and I thought badly played stereotypes like you only existed in animes whose writers couldn't think of an original plot point to save their lives," he commented, slightly in awe of the walking character style.

She stopped, and blinked at him. "What? What are you talking about?"

He decided to continue screwing with her. It was fun. "If you tell me you're a tsundere, I'll have to start selling tickets. Hell, you have cronies!"

The orange-haired girl, currently decked out in a soccer uniform, protested, "I am not a crony!"

"The fact that you have to argue with it at all does not bode well for you," he stated simply.

She balked at that statement, but the red-haired girl just held a hand up, "Don't worry about it, Hibiki. I know his game. He thinks he can split us up by making us question our relationships. Don't let him suck you in." Hibiki nodded her head, and just glared at him.

"Ok, so who all am I facing down here?" he asked, pointing between them.

The redhead posed slightly, and raised her head, looking down her nose at him. "My name is Sakura Ryouo!"

"Ryouo? You're kidding. Don't you dare tell me-"

"That I'm the daughter of the Ryouo family? The lineage that started the academy which you so callously transferred into? Of course!" She wore a smug look of superiority. "And my friends here are Hibiki Suzuki," she motioned to the orange haired girl, "and this is Kana Shuto," she pointed at the girl with dark green hair and glasses. That one just nodded, and smiled disarmingly. Ryuuko didn't trust her. "So, what's your name?"

Ryuuko paused for a second before he answered. For as much as this girl seemed to care about status, and seeming to belong to a very prestigious family, she must know quite a few wealthy and successful families. Now, he knew his parents were wealthy; the finances they had supplied him with were proof of that. He was also aware that his family had been running the dojo for about a hundred years, so it had a bit of a legacy. His mother was a successful lawyer with a large firm in the north side of Japan, but he wasn't sure how much wait his surname would carry here.

Worth a shot. "My name's Ryuuko Ryuosen. I'd say it's nice to meet you, but I've already met you, and you're a bitch."

She looked ready to snap at him, but Kana held up a hand. "Ryuosen? Like the Hokkaido dojo for mixed martial arts? And Reina Ryuosen, the criminal prosecutor?"

Ryuuko's eyebrow twitched. "Oh, god. We've got the rich girl, the info queen, and the sports nut? You have officially stereotyped me out. I'm gone," he said, and turned to leave. He'd actually reached the turnstiles Sakura yelled at him again. "Where do you think you're going?" He stopped, cursed the gods for his own horrible karma-he assumed that this must be punishment for trying to get to Shibuya.

Turning around again, he stared at her blankly. He had quickly lost interest in continuing this conversation. Scratch that, he never had any. "Alright, the stereotype thing was kind of fun, but now it's just irritating. Now, I don't want to be offensive, but please leave me alone."

Then he noticed she was staring at him differently. She drooped her eyebrows a little, and started to twirl her hair. _Oh god, don't do it, don't do it. _"So, you're from the Ryuosen family, huh? Do you think-"

"That you're putting forth a very poor attempt to flirt with me because you just found out that I come from a moderately wealthy family? Yes. Now, I'm going to say this nicely one more time," he added in a low voice, glaring at her. "Leave me alone."

She went back to glaring at him. "So that's it, huh? You're not even going to give me a chance?"

"You haven't earned it."

She balked, and paused just long enough for him to turn around and walk through the turnstiles.

He seriously hoped she didn't follow him.

Making his way through the supermarket, he decided to try buying things for lunch and dinner that were all comfort foods. Knowing that he'd have to deal with Sakura and her lackeys was almost enough to make him dive into a couple dozen gallons of chocolate ice cream. Fishing through the frozen food isles, he loaded half the cart in easy-to-prepare foods, then cruised the produce and raw foods sections, in case he felt like cooking. Which was often.

Halfway down the dessert isle, however, he ran across another interesting individual. Reaching for a certain brand f chocolate, he saw the last bar in the box disappear in a flash. He blinked a few times to see if it would reappear, then looked around quickly to see where it had gone. That's when he noticed her: a blonde haired, blue eyed, well endowed foreigner that looked a year or two younger than him. She smiled at him, and shrugged her shoulders. "Sorry, but these are my favorites. I hope that's ok?"

It took him a few seconds to realize that this highly attractive female was talking to him. "Oh, uh, sure. No problem." he quickly discovered that trying to have a serious discussion with her would be very difficult.

Her smile grew wider. "So, grocery shopping for the family? You must have a lot of people to feed."

_Thank you, pretty girl, for choosing a topic first._ "Not so much. I kinda live by myself. I just prefer to do a month's worth of shopping all at once. It's easier to make sure that I don't spend the money on other things."

"I can understand that," she agreed, adding more stuff to her bag. "I try and do shopping every other week, I get paid bi-weekly."

He started pushing his cart forward, but slowly, and she picked up on it, walking with him. "So where do you work?"

"A small cosplay café in an otaku hub in Akihabara," she said offhandedly. It wasn't till she turned around and asked him if he was still walking that he realized he'd stopped. The image of her cosplaying had detached his mental anchor on reality.

"Yeah," he said, shaking his head loose of mental imagery that he made a mental note to recall later. "Yeah, sure. So, are there any other shops in that area looking to hire? I've got a few things I want to save up for."

They continued their conversation though the check-out, and out the door, when she told him,, "Sorry, but I've got to get home. Can't let this stuff thaw out."

He grimaced, remembering the large quantities of cold products he'd purchased, and how far he had to travel. "Good point. Maybe I'll see you later?"

She grinned at him. "Maybe. I'm Patricia Martin," she said, holding out her hand.

He took it. "Ryuuko Ryuosen. Just transferred down here from Hokkaido."

Her eyebrows shot up. "Hokkaido? Really? What does your family do?"

He sighed heavily, realizing that his roots may have a deeper impact on his life here than he thought. "My dad runs the Ryuosen Mixed Martial Arts Dojo, and my mom's a lawyer."

"I'm impressed. There aren't very many people in this area who have roots in that kind of money. Is that why you set out on your own?" she asked.

"Actually, no. The dojo that my dad runs is also our house, and we have quite a few live-in students, so my parents and I agreed that I could do well enough on my own that I could try living in an environment that wasn't so martially intensive. My parents want me to go to college," he explained.

"Wow. Looks like you and your parents get along really well."

At that point, he noticed that they'd gotten to the train station. "Well, I guess this is where we split off," he said. "See you later."

"Actually," Patricia said, kind of kicking the ground. "I think I'm getting on the same train you are."

He thought about that for a moment. "Well, if we're going to be hanging out a little bit longer, then can I carry your bag?"

She smiled warmly at him. "Sure, I guess that's ok."

After a quite enjoyable train ride than mostly included conversations on what anime and games they liked, and a few other side topics. At some point, Ryuuko found out that they attended the same high school. But, unfortunately, at some point the did have to get off the train. He looked up as the announcer called his stop, and collected up his bags, handing Patricia hers.

When the train stopped, he stood up to get off, and noticed that she'd stood up, too. "Well, that works. Guess I could carry your bag for a little while longer."

She smiled again, but it was a little awkward this time. "I guess so."

They walked together for a little while later, and kept a steady conversation, but halfway, through one block, she stopped. "Um, Ryuuko?"

"Hmm?" He turned around, his arms hanging at his sides. His bags were starting to wear on his joints.

She looked slightly uncomfortable. "A-are you following me?"

He was taken aback at that. "Um, no? I kinda _live _this way. My apartment complex is less than three blocks away."

Her eyebrows shot up at that. "Um, what complex do you live in?"

"The Numime..te Ap..art..ments," he said slowly, realization dawning on him. "You live their too, don't you?"

She grinned, mischievously. "Well, it's good to know that you aren't stalking me. And now I don't feel bad about asking you to carry my stuff all the way up to my apartment."

It was his turn to grin awkwardly. "Well, I guess that works, doesn't it?" They made their way the few blocks up to the complex, and had reached the elevator. "So what floor do you live on?"

She just stepped around him and hit a button, standing in front of the panel. "Can't let you know, that, now can I? A girl's gotta have her secrets." She held a finger to her lips and winked at him.

He just nodded in agreement, and felt his face heat up. She must have seen his blush, because she giggled.

The door dinged, and slid open. Ryuuko followed the blonde girl down the hall, and she clicked her door open. She took her bag out of the handfuls of groceries he had. "Thanks for the help, hope I see you again." She gave him a little wave and a smile.

"Later," he said, as she closed the door.

He took a few steps down the hall, paused, and then looked at the next door down. And realized he knew that apartment number.

Setting his bags down, and pulling out his keys, he unlocked the door to his apartment, and moved his bags in. As he unpacked his groceries, he thought to himself, _Yeah, much sooner than you think, Martin-san._

The knowledge that he lived next door to a gorgeous foreigner who was even more of an anime fan than he was had done well to elate Ryuuko's mood. H spent most of Sunday walking around his apartment, humming to himself. At one point, he even danced around in nothing but jeans, a wife beater, and a pair of headphones. Of course, it had to be at that point that someone would knock on his door.

Ryuuko's first thoughts were along the lines of, _Cool, company! Something else to do._ It wasn't till he reached for the door handle that he realized the only people who knew where he lived were himself and family members, and they didn't knock. _Who the hell could that be? I hope it's not my neighbor asking me to keep it down. I'd have to kick.. His.. Oh, that's right._ As the realization that the person who had been depriving him of sleep had been Patricia-san hit him, he shrugged it off, and, tying his hair back quickly (people didn't appreciate long-haired teenagers), opened the door.

"What's up, people?" he asked happily, hopefully to throw any agitated neighbors off-guard.

Then he saw Patricia at his door. "So, you live next door to me?" she asked, a sly smile on her face, her arms crossed. "There is a limit to stalking people, you know."

He knew his face was beet red, he could feel it burning. It felt like someone took a Bunsen burner to his cheeks. "Uh… heh. What are you doing?" he asked quickly.

"Right now I'm staring at an attractive high schooler who skips lyrics when he sings," she joked.

"I don't skip lyrics, there's only, like, 5 lines in the song!" Then something clicked. "How the hell did you know I was singing?"

"Paper thin walls, Ryuuko-san. I came over to ask a quick favor, since it didn't take long for me to realize it was you who lived next door," she explained.

"Yeah, sure," he said. The something else clicked. Who the hell was working the switchboard in his brain? "Do you want to come in?" Ryuuko asked shyly, not really sure if he should be asking a girl into his apartment. But he didn't want to be rude, and make her stand outside.

"Sure," she accepted his offer, stepping past him. She took a quick look around his apartment: simple furniture, an entertainment center with a 360 and an old PS2 hooked up. Not very many decorations, all in all. "Looks like this place could use a woman's touch," she joked.

"Nah. I'm pretty happy with it. Most of my decorations go into my room, so I figure the more neutral the living room is, the less grief I get when my relatives visit," he stepped into his room, and Patricia got a glimpse of a wide variety of color before he stepped out, and tossed a couple of bean bag chairs next to his table. She noted the lack of couch.

"It doesn't look like there are very many comfortable places to sit here," she observed. "You must not have very many guests."

"Actually, aside from my parents when I first moved in, you're the first guest I've had," he told her. "Want something to drink?"

"What do you have?" she asked, taking a seat in one of the chairs. Immediately, she realized why he didn't have any other furniture. She felt ready to fall asleep in this chair, and she wasn't even tired.

"Pretty much everything except alcohol. How about a coke?"

"That's fine."

He stepped back into the living room, and tossed her her soda. "So, what's this big favor?"

She craned her neck to look at him, having sunk backwards into the chair. "Well, I'm having some friends over in about an hour, one of my classmates and a sempai of mine. I'd really just kind of wanted to ask you if you could keep it down. It wasn't so much a big thing."

"That shouldn't be too hard. I didn't even realize I was singing. I was actually thinking about going for another walk, even if it did mean risking the Plothole Queen again." Patricia raised an eyebrow at him, so he explained his transactions with Sakura and her tagalongs. "I can't believe people like that exist. Soon as she hear where I was from, and who my family was, she was like a dog in heat. I swear, people that are only into money disappoint me. There are better things to be passionate about."

Patricia shook her head. "I've heard about them. According to my classmate, Hiyori, they were going out of there way to bash on my sempai the other day. Fortunately, and I'm quoting Hiyori quoting sempai on this, 'Some flag-triggering hottie with long hair chewed her up and spit her back out.' I'd like to meet the guy," she sighed.

It took him maybe half a second to make the connection. "Your sempai, her name wouldn't happen to be Izumi Konata, would it?"

"Yeah, why?" she asked, then her eyes widened in realization.

He waved at her. "Nice to meet you. My name is Ryuuko Ryuosen. Also known as the flag-trigger with long hair."

"So you were the one who stood up for Konata? Wow. I thought she was exaggerating," she grinned.

"Ok, flattery is all well and good, but I think she was. I'm not that great. Kinda wiry, too tall, I don't cut my hair except to trim it up a little. And besides, nearly the first thing I said to that Ryouo chick was just angry ranting. I just had a headache," he chuckled, finding the whole situation kind of absurd. "It's interesting that you know her, though. Wouldn't think I'd meet so many interconnected people so quickly."

She gave him a sideways look, then laughed. "Give yourself more credit. You'r not quite as bad as you think. Of course, Izumi-sempai has quite a habit of throwing things out of proportion, and it's easy to get carried away when you're around her."

"Isn't that the truth," he nodded. "Hey, why don't you tell them hi for me when they come over?"

She thought about that for a second. "Why don't you tell them yourself? I've already been to your place, it's not like coming over to mine is any big stretch. And besides, the only person there you haven't met yet is Hiyori-chan. On top of that, it's bound to get out at some point today that you're my neighbor, and Konata-sempai's not going to want to leave you by yourself in here."

He chuckled at the thought of Izumi dragging him out of his apartment by his feet. "True enough. Alright, sounds like a plan. Just let me throw a better shirt on."

She took a look at him really quick, and said, "Nah, leave the shirt off. You have this interesting bishounen-rock star thing going. Hiyori would freak."

"How so?" he asked, tilting his head.

Patricia laughed at the thought. "You know how in a lot of animes with fan service, there's always a guy that gets nosebleeds?"

"Yeah," he motioned for her to continue.

"Hiyori-chan doesn't need the fan service. She has a habit of drifting off into her own little world, and creating fantasies for herself that she scolds herself over later. It's so funny to watch. And a piece of eye-candy like you might make her pass out." she laughed as she talked, mental images of Hiyori falling over from blood loss swimming in her head.

He considered it for a moment, then stepped into his room without a word. "I have an idea," he grinned, and closed the door.

"She chuckled to herself. "Trying to maximize the effect, right?" she shouted through the door.

"You know it. Just let me know if it's a little over the top." She heard some rustling from the other side of his door, as he prepared himself for the joke. A few minutes later, he stepped out.

And Patricia soon ran to the kitchen for some napkins to plug her _own_ nose.

He had ditched the black wife beater for a white, slightly see-through button down t-shirt, which he hadn't bothered to button. The jeans had been replaced by black leather biker's pants, baggy but simple, and he had thrown on a pair of sandals. His hair wasn't tied back anymore, actually slightly ruffled as it fell around his face. He had thrown a pair of raver goggles around his neck to add some edge to the look.

And the coup-de-grace, a Gibson EB0 in deep crimson, hung around his waist, as he held the neck like the hilt of a back-mounted sword. The guitar itself had a chord leading from the base to a pocket-amp clipped to his belt. He looked ready to rock out loud. "Patricia-san? You ok?"

She walked out of the kitchen with a napkin held to her nose, and gave him a thumbs up. "Good job!" she told him in plain English.

He scratched the back of his head with his free hand. "It doesn't look that good, does it? I always thought this image was kind of tacky. I still don't understand why girls like this."

She shook her head violently. "No, no, no! That kind of attitude won't do at all! If you're going to dress the part, you have to act it! Now, come on, we've only got a half hour to practice before they get here! To my place!" She declared, throwing her fist in the air.

"Yosh!" he agreed, mimicking her action.

Konata and Hiyori came up to the rather large apartment complex a little after noon. "Wow, this place is big!" Konata exclaimed. She had never been to Patty-chan's apartment.

Hiyori, however, had. "It's not that bad. The layout is pretty straightforward. And they maximize the room to get a lot of good-sized apartments in here. They're pretty efficient about it, so rent isn't bad. a lot of high school and college students live here."

Konata nodded along. "I see, I see. People must trigger flags here every day!"

Hiyori felt a bead of sweat fall down the back of her head. "Yeah, I guess so."

The elevator ride up, and the walk to locate her room, were relatively uneventful.

Patricia made sure to rectify that. "Welcome," she greeted them boisterously, opening her door for them to walk in.

"Hey, Patty-chan," Konata greeted her casually, then dropped a bag on the table. She took a quick look around. Anime posters lines the walls, as shelves of manga, games, and DVDs took up most of the room. She nodded her approval. "A true declaration of Otaku culture, Patty-chan. Good Job!" she snapped a thumbs up.

Patty nodded her thanks. "So, what's in the bag?" she asked.

Hiyori told her, "We dropped by the grocery store and picked up some snacks. I think we bought too many, though." she noticed that Patricia had a little dab of dried blood under her nose. "Are you ok, Patty-chan?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine! Hey, we have someone else joining us today!" she proclaimed. Konata noticed the mischievous glint in her eye.

"Oh, really, who?" she asked, eager to see Patricia's plan in action.

"That would be me, Izumiya-chan." said a voice from behind the two. Patricia grinned.

"Hey Ryuukyon, what are you-" but her sentence was cut off as she turned around to look at him. Noticing his slightly daring outfit, he saluted her with two fingers, leaning his other arm on the tip of his guitar.

"Sup?" he asked nonchalantly, grinning at her. He glanced over to Hiyori; blood had filled her face, and she looked ready to fall over. Konata looked the same. He stole a glance over to Patricia-san, who gave him a nod that clearly said: _step two._

He paused for half a second, not sure if he wanted to go all the way through with it, but Patricia edged him on silently. So, taking a step forward, he leaned in until his face was a few inches from Konata's, and put a hand on her chin. Leaning his other hand on his hip, he asked her, his practiced voice smooth and low, "So, what do you want to do? You came over to have fun, right?"

It was a critical hit. Konata wobbled, then fell backwards, hitting the ground with a crash. Ryuuko, wanting to see this through to the end, glanced sideways at Hiyori, who had started to glow, she was so red, and gave her a simple wink-and-smile combo.

She went down in much the same fashion.

Seeing them both unconscious, Ryuuko paused for a second, then shuddered. "God, I feel so dirty now. I should go change my clothes, or my shirt at least, and apologize. That was a little much."

Patricia just waved a hand at him. "Don't worry about it. Kona-chan and I work in the same cosplay café, and Hiyori is a doujin artist. Scenes like this in real life are what we live for." He noticed her nose was bleeding again.

"Ok, that's it. I'm changing," he said, leaning his guitar against the door.

While his back was turned, Patricia hatched another idea. Quickly pulling out a moist towelette from her pocket, and a compact mirror, she made sure her face was clear of any blood. She noticed she was blushing heavily, and thought about taking a second to cool down, but realized she could use it to her advantage.

She undid the top button of her blouse, not enough to reveal anything, but enough for a boy no notice the change, and stepped up to him as he was reaching for the door. "Um, Ryuuko-sempai?" she asked sweetly, her voice practically candy-coated from weeks of practice at the café.

He turned around, and froze. Patricia was leaning in on him, giving him a deep, puppy-dog-like stare, and blushing heavily. He didn't miss the undone button. "Ye-yeah?"

"C-can I help you change? Pleeease, Ryuukun?" she dragged out his name in a little-sisterly voice, and batted her eyes.

It was his turn for a nosebleed, as he threw the door open, and ran back to his apartment for tissues.

"Patricia-san, you're evil," Ryuuko commented, as they all sat around the table. Ryuuko had changed into a black t-shirt and blue jeans, and Konata and Hiyori had awoken, all having wiped off their noses.

"Oh, come on, you enjoyed that!" she pouted cutely. He felt his face flush red as her childish behavior brought back the mental image of her imouto act.

"So, Patty-chan, you didn't tell us that Ryuukyon was your neighbor!" Konata said happily, bouncing in her seat. "This is awesome, now we have all of the otakus together! Right, Hiyori?"

The kouhai wasn't paying attention, as she scribbled furiously on pieces of art paper. "Can't talk, too many ideas."

Konata shrugged, then looked over to Ryuuko. "So, what's with the guitar? Do you play?"

"Yeah, it's the only thing I like more than anime," _and girls, he thought to himself, _"I've been playing for years, whenever dad wasn't making me train, or mom wasn't making me study. I just got into the otaku universe about a year ago, but I got hooked pretty quickly."

"So what kind of music do you play?" Patricia asked him.

"At first, I'd just played whatever guitar tabs I could get my hands on. Then I started writing my own pieces, but they weren't that good. Lately, I've been doing covers for my favorite Ops and EDs. Working on a variation to Lost My Music, right now. I'm thinking about putting in for the culture festival, as a one-man performance. I'd ask some other people, but I don't think any of you girls play, and I haven't met anyone else to hang out with yet," he noticed the girls staring at him, then back at the guitar, as he talked.

"…You're not gonna let me go today unless I play something, huh?" All three of them shook their heads.

"Oh, by the way, Ryuukun?" Patricia asked.

"Yeah, Patri… Patty-chan?"

She smiled at him using her nickname. "Ryuukyon?" she asked simply.

He looked at Konata, who shrugged. Then he sighed to himself. "And here I thought today would be nice and short."

Author's note: Well, what do you think? Having fun? NEXT CHAPTER: Lost My Music - Romantic Soldier Version!


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: I'm having a lot of fun with this fan fiction. I've got songs written for it now, and I even did a youtube fandub for them. If you're interested, my you tube id is the same as my one.

Anyways, on with the show.

Chapter 3: The First Trial

"Ok, why do they sell them if they smell so bad? Isn't it jus bad marketing?" Ryuuko asked.

"I think they just don't tell people. You don't find out about it until you open the package, right? I guess they just keep finding new people to sell to," Hiyori mused.

Konata nodded her agreement, then she looked over at the clock. "Wow, it's already that late? I should get going!"

Ryuuko followed her gaze. "Holy crap! Ah, well, guess I won't get to play for you, then." He shrugged, and grinned at them. Picking up his guitar, he made for the door, but a hand on his pant leg stopped him. _Don't turn around, don't turn around, don't turn around_, he told himself. He knew if he did, they'd do something to convince him to play, and he really didn't feel like playing in front of people. _Why don't I just tell them that?_ he thought to himself, and shrugged. Turning around, he started, "You know, I'm not really sure-"

The trifecta of puppy-dog eyes stopped him in his tracks. "I-I'm not very good, and I only have a couple songs that I know by heart," he told them.

"But Ryuukuuun…" Patricia dragged out the last syllable in a pleading tone. He felt his face start to overheat. _Being the only guy otaku in the group. I've known these girls only a few days, and they can get to me._

He slumped his shoulders. "I'm never winning an argument with any of you, am I?"

The puppy dog eyes disappeared, and the girls smiled, realizing their victory. They took seats on the far side of the table, they stared at him eagerly. Konata gave a quick laugh, "You should realize that in any given scenario where there is only one guy and more than one girl, the guy never gets to make his own choices. You should just get used to it now."

"I don't understand why this is such a big deal to you," he groaned.

Hiyorin smiled. "That's pretty simple. You've come across a group of girls who spend their entire lives fantasizing about unlikely scenarios that they'd love to insert themselves into, and now that they, we, have that opportunity, and that scenario includes someone who understands the appeal of what we're looking for, it's very unlikely that we're going to give it up so early, if at all."

Ryuuko blinked, as Konata and Patricia nodded their agreement. "Dammit Haruhi," he muttered. "Alright, alright."

He took a few moments to go back into his apartment, with Konata as a chaperone. "We don't want you locking the door and leaving us there," she explained.

"Well, you get to help me carry the stuff back," he told her. She slumped; the prospect of manual labor was not enjoyable.

A few minutes later, the amp and guitar had made a reappearance, and Konata had convinced him to change back into the rock star outfit. Again, puppy dog eyes were involved. Having moved some of the furniture in Patricia's apartment so he could set up a mock stage in the living room.

As they took their seats, Ryuuko stopped one more time, and gave it one last chance: "Ok, like I said, I'm not that good, but-" he cut off, realizing that they were seconds away from puppy dog eyes, and another attack of that kind would probably set his face on fire. "Ok, ok, I get it," he conceded. With the guitar tuned, and every last shred of argument moe-d out of him by three attractive girls, he started:

"This is the Romantic Soldier version of Lost My Music," he started.

"Wait, you did a new version of Haruhi's songs?" Konata asked.

"I could stop," he grinned.

She started to say something, but Hiyori and Patricia gave her a look. "Ok… I guess."

"_We were looking at the stars, you pointed out the one, that was shining upon us._

_And I realize as I stand on stage, there is nothing more in this world I want._

_As I stand here in my place, and I start pulling strings, the music courses through me._

_And I think of how I got up here, it was all, and always thanks to you._

_I am standing up here with the one I love._

_And I play my heart out cause I know she hears it._

_There is nothing left for me to do from here._

_I will settle down and we'll start being happy._

_I still, I still, I love you, I'm playing, playing, your music._

_I still, I still, I love you, and I will always watch you shine._

_BRIGHT!_

_As I play this song for you, I'll always love you true, we'll always be together._

_You can leave all your fears in the dust, don't you worry, you know I'm there to save you._

_So just take my hand and run, we're always having fun, and nobody can stop us._

_Let them try all they want, they can't win, and you know, they're never catching up._

_We will play forever till the stage goes dark._

_We'll keep playing cause you know they'll never stop us._

_Let them try all they want, we won't move an inch._

_And there's nothing they can say to change our minds._

_I love, I love, I love you; you're shining, shining, down on me._

_I love, I love, I love you, please don't let the lights go out._

_YET!"_

He started in on a simpler version of the guitar solo, working a basic tune. He looked up a few times to check for a response, and was pleasantly surprised: he held them at rapt attention. He played the rest of the song with mush more confidence.

"_So you just keep playing like you wanted to._

_Cause there's no one left here with the gall to stop you._

_We can keep on playing till the night is through._

_We don't have to ever stop if you don't want to._

_By the way, did you look in the bag I brought?_

_There's a box in there that I think you should open!_

_If you don't believe me we can stop right now,_

_I want everyone here to hear my proposal!_

_I will, I will, always love you; will you, will you, marry me?_

_I will, I will always love you, so baby please say yes!_

_I love, I love, I love you; we'll be together forever._

_I love, I love, I love you, and I can't wait to say I do!" _He wrapped up the rest of the song with an improvised outro, that included a couple of the more complicated chords from the solo. By the time he was done, his fingers were sore; he hadn't practiced those lines well enough to do them without risk to his fingers.

He looked up, expecting either honest criticism, (which he was sure a diehard fan like Konata would be more than happy to give), or polite applause, but was in for a surprise. His audience wasn't moving.

He took this as a bad sign. Wrapping up his guitar in cloth, and laying it back in it's case, he explained, "I know. I've got a ways to go before I can play like Yuki, but it's a song I enjoy quite a bit, so I decided to have fun with it." He grinned weakly at them, scratching the back of his head. Their expressions were mixed; Konata looked deep in thought, and wasn't actually looking at him, and Hiyori and Patricia were just staring.

"Guys?" He was nervous. The only people he'd really played for were his family, and those were original works.

Konata nodded her head a few times, and finally said, "That wasn't bad. The guitar was pretty basic, compared to the original chords, but your voice was solid. I couldn't understand most of it, considering it was an English dub, but I like that you kept the lyrics to match the beat of the song itself, not just throwing in lines and making them work. I'm guessing you listened to the song a piece at a time, and wrote out the lines to the tune as you went?"

Ryuuko nodded, smiling in relief. "Yeah, it took longer than I thought, but I'd listened to the song a few times, just an instrumental version, and kind of sang out on a whim. It wasn't until I realized I was singing nearly the same thing every time that I decided to write it down and memorize it. I decided to do an English version, because there isn't really an official one yet, so I have more license in reworking it."

He looked over to Patricia, who was showing signs of movement. Then she started clapping. "That was so good! I love fan-made works, they show a real passion for the original piece! And I got all of it, I didn't know your English was so good!"

He shrugged at that. "My bother taught me most of what I know, the rest I just did my homework on. I'm still not fluent; I had to translate the original lyrics I'd come up with, and he worked in the rhymes and consistency. He's living in America right now, I was basically helping him practice for when he left, and was learning on the way. I just wish I was as good in History or Cultural Sciences. They're the only reasons my grades aren't as good as I'd like," he'd set aside his equipment, and sat down to relax for a second, the apprehension of how his piece would be received almost completely dissolved. So he looked to Hiyori.

She didn't move for a little bit, and Ryuuko was worried she was trying to think of something to say to be polite. He'd prefer it if she were just honest with her opinion. Then Konata waved a hand in front of her face. "Hiyorin? Are you ok?"

Her head shot up, and she blinked a lot, before saying, "What, huh? What'd I miss?"

Konata and Patricia face vaulted, and Ryuuko sweat dropped. "We were just wondering what you thought about the song I did," Ryuuko told her.

Her eyes glazed over slightly, and a small stream of drool poured out of the corner of her mouth. "Ca-can I put you in a doujin?" she asked.

He nearly face vaulted himself, and laughed. He couldn't help himself. "As long as I'm not the seme," he joked.

The other girls blushed, and Hiyori needed another napkin. Taking this as a good point in which to cut off the conversation for the night, he packed up his things, and waved the girls goodbye.

It had been a week since Ryuuko's mini-performance. The day started out rather boring, compared to his weekend. He still had the large sum of "date money" set aside, although that was now in savings, as his checking had been replaced by his grocery and living expenses. Although he had no idea who to spend it on. According to Hiyori's diagnoses of his current situation, he apparently had a few different girls to chose from, but he hadn't met quite that many people yet. Who knew what unexplored depths of Otaku culture thrived within Ryouo Academy's walls.

Bu he also had other issues to work out. He needed to find a part-time job, something he was good at, to save up for his dream trip. There was also one other issue: as the school year had started the week before he arrived, he still had to join a club. There was also the issue of insuring that any potential job he held wouldn't interfere with club activities, and vice versa.

So after school, he decided to explore the different club rooms, as most were still advertising for new members.

But not alone. "And why are you following me around?" he asked Konata.

"Well, since Miyuki-san has another dental appointment, and Tsukasa-chan and Kagamin are doing work for the shrine, I don't really have anything else to do. And I have plenty of time to kill, since Yu-chan is spending the night at Minami-chan's house, and my dad's not home," she scanned the advertising posters for the different clubs, although Ryuuko could tell she had no interest in anything else that could take her time.

"Wait, who're Yu-chan and Minami?" he stopped, looking at her.

"Oh, that's right. You haven't met all of my friends, yet. Yutaka is my cousin, who's living with us while she attends Ryouo. She's in Patty-chan and Hiyorin's class. Minami's her best friend, also in the same class. They're practically inseparable. It's so cute, but Hiyorin keeps having issues. You've seen her fantasize randomly, right?"

"Oh, yeah," he told her. He hadn't forgotten the doujin comment.

"Well, those two are the closest thing any of my friends are to a Yuri couple. Which I guess would make Hiyorin the closest thing we have to a lesbian," she mused.

Ryuuko didn't realize he was blushing till he saw the look on Konata's face. "Wh-what? I'm still a guy, you know."

She grinned. "I know. Of course, I have to remind myself sometimes, cause of your hair," she added.

"Oh, come on. It's not that bad! It's a little long, whatever," he pouted.

"You do know that pouting doesn't help, right?" she grinned at her.

He just stopped, and went back to looking over the club ideas. He saw a few that entertained him, like the Light Music Club, and a couple of martial arts clubs. Then he came across two that made his heart skip a beat. One, was the Animation Research Club. The other was the Choreography club. He didn't know such a thing existed. He took down both posters, one in each hand.

Konata looked over his shoulder, and he could practically hear her grin. It helped that she hummed briefly. "So, the Animation Research club? Trying to get closer to Hiyorin, huh? At least you're not as oblivious as most main characters."

It took him a second to realize what she said. "Hiyorin's in this club?" he looked from Konata to the club poster. "Maybe that's not such a good idea," he mused.

"Why's that?" Konata asked. She gave him a look.

"Hey, don't give me that. I'm just being practical. If I live next door to Patricia, and have class with you, wouldn't joining a club that Hiyori-san's in look a little weird?" he explained.

Konata took a moment to think that over. "I guess you have a point. Coming on too strong with a few different people at once would be too much this early in the game."

He pocketed both posters, anyway. "Just in case the choreography club sucks," he told her. He knew she didn't believe him.

After reviewing a few more clubs, and parting with Konata, Ryuuko decided to actually _go_ to the club rooms and investigate. He figured making the Choreography Club his first stop would make his cheap excuse for taking both posters more plausible. He wouldn't admit it to anyone, but the fact that Hiyori was in the Animation Research Club had almost completely sold him on it. He had a soft spot for the three otaku girls that had sunk their hooks in him. The last week had been kind of fun. Tiring, but fun.

As it turned out, the Choreography club and the Animation Research Club were on the same floor, only a few doors away from each other. _This will make things a little easier in deciding, _he thought.

As it turned out, deciding between the Choreography and Animation Clubs was much easier than he thought.

The club members _did_ have something to do with it, though.

He stepped into the Choreography club room, and took a quick look around. The desks for the classroom had all been set to the side, and a few dance mats were lad out on the floor. He saw a clothing rack full of various outfits, and a large stereo system had been set up on the teacher's desk. The instructor was sitting behind it, fiddling with a laptop. Ryuuko recognized him as one of the first year teachers he'd met on his tour of the school.

As he closed the door behind him, the instructor looked up. "Oh, welcome. Are you interested in the Choreography Club? Good. My name is Mr. Takasuki. Come on in," he said. He fit the image of a middle-aged Japanese man perfectly: short brown hair, simple features, and a slightly thin, athletic build.

"Yeah, it sounds interesting. I've always kind of been a fan of music, but groups like the Jazz and Light Music Clubs just didn't sound like a good fit. So I thought I'd take a look at the more athletic approach," Ryuuko explained, taking a look around the room. The decorations were mainly posters of pop idols and various ballets and theatre performances.

"Well, that's one way to look at it. Are you an athlete? Why not try one of the sports or martial arts clubs?" Mr. Takasuki shut down the computer, and walked out from behind the desk.

"Well, I'm not really an athlete, but my father runs a dojo, so I guess you could call me a martial artist. He kind of drilled it into me. I mean, I don't even live with my parents anymore, and I still do exercises every morning," he kind of laughed. He liked this teacher, something about him felt like Ryuuko could open up.

"You don't live with your parents?" the teacher asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ryuuko was confused for a second. Then he realized the instructor's concerns. "Oh, no, it's nothing like that," he told him, and explained the issue of the large amount of students in that actually lived at the dojo.

"Hmm, so you're the Ryuosen boy who moved here recently. Yes, I heard about your brother. I have a nephew who studies Mui Tai in Hokkaido," he added, seeing Ryuuko's reinstated confusion.

The long-haired teen laughed. "Yeah, that would do it. My parents do like to brag. So, what kind of steps do you teach? Any specific dances?"

"Well, what are you interested in learning?"

Ryuuko thought about it for a bit. "Something that requires a good amount of exercise. Something with cardio, like Jumpstyle, or break dancing. Maybe even krumping."

"Well, we have one or two students that are learning that last one," Mr. Takasuki told him. "Why don't you come back tomorrow, right after school? We're using that day for freestyle practice, you'll get a small taste of everything."

"That sounds good," Ryuuko said, turning to leave. "Guess I'll see you-" he stopped in his tracks as the door opened in front of him, and Sakura stepped into the room. She blinked in surprise, then glared at him.

"What the hell are you doing here? Trying to make more of my life miserable?" she screeched.

Ryuuko cleaned out the ringing in his ears with a finger. "Actually, just leaving. Wouldn't want to bother you in the middle of your bitching."

She huffed, then looked behind him, and for a second, he could have sworn she winced. But as quickly as her expression changed, it snapped back to her typical smug glare, and he just stepped out of the room.

His next stop being the Animation Research Club, he didn't have far to walk. Opening the door to this clubroom, he was that there was much less setup involved. And Hiyori was already there. Of course, she was the only person in the class he recognized.

"Hey, Hiyori-san. What's up?" he greeted her, sitting down on the opposite end of her table.

"Ryuuko-san? Wha-wha-what are you doing here?" she spluttered. It was obvious she didn't expect his sudden appearance.

He just shrugged, and said simply, "Izumiya-chan suggested it." It wasn't a _total_ lie.

"Oh," was all she said, then smiled. "So, you're interested in the AR Club, right?"

"A bit. I've only ever seen the finished product. Seeing and learning how it's made and how to do it would be a good experience for me."

Hiyori turned, and waved someone down. "Well, if you're serious about joining, there's someone you should meet," she told him.

At that point, another female student stepped up to the desk, and Ryuuko did a double-take. This girl looked a great deal like Patricia, except a bit taller, with very tan skin. "Good to meet you," she said, holding out a hand. Ryuuko took it. "Name's Kou Yasaka. I'm the president of the Animation Research club. So what other groups have you checked out?"

"I took a quick stop by the Choreography club," he told them. They gave him a weird look, much like the one Konata had when he first showed his hesitation on joining this club. "I'm not joining, though. Too much work."

"What," Kou started. "You not very athletic?"

"Oh, the dancing's no problem. I just can't deal with the members," he added, slumping down on a desk. He explained briefly his association with Sakura Ryouo. Their expressions change from slight hesitation to that of an agreeing person.

"Yes, we've met her and her friends a couple of times. We hear she's a problem for the upperclassmen, too," Kou said, taking a seat. "But it's not very easy here. What kind of artistic talent do you have?"

"I have some musical experience, but I only sketch here and there. I prefer writing myself. I don't know if you guy teach new members how to draw."

Hiyori tugged on Kou's sleeve, then whispered something into her ear. Kou's eyes widened. "You mean _he's_ the model for the new Ryuukai character in your serial?" she asked loudly. Ryuuko felt a large group of people stare at him all at once, and Hiyori blushed deeply.

He put two and two together. "Well, Hiyori-san, I'm glad you asked me first." He motioned for her to lean in, and got somewhat close to whisper to her. Again, he couldn't help himself. In a rather loud voice, but aimed away from Hiyori's ear, he asked, "You remembered to write me in as the uke, right? I'd hate to see myself portrayed as the dominant one." The risk of public humiliation to himself was far outweighed by the reaction.

He had never seen Hiyori reach for napkins so quickly, nor had he seen a large group of girls move that fast. "Are you serious?" one asked him. Another tugged on his sleeve. "You mean you wanted to be the seme?"

"I try not to be a forceful person. I just think emotional connections are more important than physical ones," he told them all plainly.

Hiyori just tugged at his hair. "Do you mind going a few days without flagging every fan girl in the room?" her voice was thick from holding her nose.

"Hey, if I can't have some fun, what else am I going to do? Besides, it's not like you're not benefiting from this," he told her.

She glared at him. "How so?"

He just leaned back in his chair. "I don't know, Hiyori, what would you say the benefits of being the artist for a Yaoi doujin with a willing model are?" He could hear a couple of necks crack as the girls turned their heads.

"You mean you're drawing this, Hiyori?"

"Can I read it when you're done?"

"I'll pay for my copy!"

"Me too!"

Hiyori stared at him, then grinned. "Hey, when your mom's a lawyer, and your dad is as eccentric as mine, you learn a few things about getting the public's attention."

He felt a hand clap onto his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Kou staring at him with stars in her eyes. "You are SO in! Welcome to the Animation Research Club!"

Ryuuko went temporarily deaf from the large burst of noise around him.

After a few introductions, and some personal interrogations, Ryuuko had filled out the paperwork, and was now an official member of the research club. As the group dispersed, Ryuuko was the first to leave. He waved goodbye to a few new friends, and his existing one, and walked back the way he came. He stopped, however, right outside the Choreography club, as he heard a sound like a small impact. Still a little deaf, he leaned his ear against the door, and was able to make out a couple of voices, but not what they were saying. Then he heard the sound again, followed by what sounded like a soft cry.

He leaned away from the door, and swung it open. What he saw confirmed his suspicions, and raised in him a temper he hadn't felt in a while.

On her knees on one of the mats was Sakura, who was holding her cheek, and he noticed she had a few tears in her uniform. Then his gaze shifted right, and he saw Mr. Takasuki standing over her, his hand in the air.

It didn't take much to put two and two together here.

"Get out!" Mr. Takasuki yelled.

He ignored him, and looked at Sakura. "Ryouo, what floor are we on? I forget." His head was bowed, and she couldn't read his expression.

"What the hell does-"

"WHAT. Floor. Are we on?" he barked. She flinched at his voice, and he made it a point to apologize later.

"The-the first," she stammered.

"Good," he said quietly.

The next thing Mr. Takasuki knew, he was being tackled out the window, and upon landing, received several heavy blows to the face. "YOU! WILL! NEVER! TOUCH! A! GIRL! AGAIN!" Ryuuko screamed, punctuating each word with a blow. He only stopped after he noticed the instructor blank out.

Ryuuko wasn't at school the next day.

"Did you here?"

"About the third year that attacked the teacher?"

"I heard he'd moved out of his parent's house because he was a psycho."

"I heard they had to pry him off the guy, even after he was unconscious."

"What a freak!"

"You said it."

Rumors had abounded throughout Ryouo Academy the last several days about the long-haired delinquent who tackled a teacher through a first-story window. The only facts that anyone seemed to agree on were: One. The teacher hadn't had a chance to fight back. Two. He was now in intensive care. Three. He wouldn't be returning to Ryouo. Most people assumed the reason for the last one was fear.

Konata and her friends were simply shocked. Nobody had gone to visit Ryuuko at his house, and even Patricia-san said he wasn't answering his door, even though she knew he was there.

It was lunchtime, the Friday after the incident, and the entire group had gathered together in the cafeteria to discuss it. "I can't believe he was so violent!" Kagami declared. "He seemed like a really nice guy, if a bit weird. I didn't think he'd be that kind of person."

"There has to be a good reason for it!" Konata grumbled. "I've only known him a couple of weeks, but he's a good guy. He's got a great sense of humor, and just kind of goes with the flow. There's got to be something. Something must have set him off."

Hiyori and Patricia nodded their agreement. "I'd talked to him only minutes before it happened, there's no way it wasn't provoked! That teacher must have done something!" Hiyori argued.

Minami and Yutaka were there, but didn't have much to add. "I'd seen him on the bus, and he looked like some kind of delinquent, but he was really quiet. I thought he was really reserved. He was even singing to himself," Yutaka remembered. Minami just nodded her confirmation.

"Well, I've never met the guy, but something's gotta be up. No way someone attacks somebody else like that, even a teacher, without a good reason. Weren't there any witnesses?"

"No," Miyuki explained. "Nobody had found the scene until the cops showed up. According to the official public report, Ryuuko called them himself.

"I wonder what could have happened?" Tsukasa mused.

"I'll tell you what happened," said a voice from behind them. They looked up as one to see Sakura Ryouo standing above them. "I can tell you pretty much the whole story. I was there."

"If you're here to bash on our friend again-" Konata said warningly.

The red-haired girl held up her hands. They noticed the lack of cronies. "No. Just the truth. I owe it to him to tell someone. It's going to get out soon, anyway. I just prefer it if the people that knew him heard it from me." She sighed, and began. "Ryuuko's attack wasn't random. He had walked into the room right after…" she stopped, but noone urged her on. She looked around- most of the people at this table didn't trust her, let alone like her. But she'd made up her mind. "He walked into the room right after Mr. Takasuki had hit me. He'd done it a few times, too. I guess Ryuuko figured it out, I wasn't in the best shape."

"Figured what out?" Kagami pressed.

Sakura looked at each of them again. _I've already decided I'm going to tell them, I might as well. Just hold my nose and dive in, she thought to herself. _"The reason Mr. Takasuki isn't coming back to school is because he's been arrested, and is waiting trial."

"WHAT?" the group yelled at large. "What for," Konata finished.

"For what Ryuuko figured out from just a glance. I'm actually impressed that he put it together. He even told the cops to keep me out of the release of the report," she told them. Another sigh escaped her lips. "Ryuuko hasn't been expelled from school, you don't need to worry about that. He was just granted leave after the incident. They're not pressing charges because he was acting in my defense, and we've already proved it. Mr. Takasuki is under arrest because I filed for sexual assault. Ryuuko figured out that my club instructor was raping me."

Author's note: You thought it would be all nice and cheery, huh? Well, don't worry. Most of it is. But I can't have everything be all cheer and roses, huh? And now you're hooked. Least I hope so. That's kind of the point of a dramatic plot exposition. Not to make light of the situation. I absolutely abhor rape. Assaulting a female, even hitting one once, is completely unforgivable. I just think people tip-toe around big issues too much.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Ok, people. Chapter 4 not much to say. (Except that I hate being unemployed… )

By the way, the legal stuff in this chapter? I actually looked it up. Way to go, Japan. Self defense/defense of another FTW.

Chapter 4: This time… Oh, who am I kidding?

For Ryuuko, not having to go to school for a couple of weeks should have been a nice reprieve. He didn't have to worry about running across the horrible instructor he'd assaulted. He wouldn't have to listen to people talk about him behind his back. He wouldn't even have to deal with Sakura and her cronies. Lord knows what she thought of him, now. He could practice hi guitar, write some new material, practice his artwork, hell, he even had time to exercise and cook some decent meals.

Of course, this would all be fabulously true, if his family hadn't intervened. Namely, his dad.

As Ryuuko sat in the living room, the Saturday after his incident, he waited for his dad to finish parking the car. Which took some time, as his father was not an excellent driver. He wasn't _bad_, he just…

Ok, he was bad. But not horrible.

At least he never hit anything.

A heavy knock on the door indicated that his father had completed his mission, and was ready to talk to Ryuuko. And by "ready to talk," he meant scream at. Ryuuko stepped up to the door, and checked through the peephole, hoping that somehow his parents had decided just to leave him alone, for whatever godawful reason. No such luck.

"Hi, dad," he said solemnly, opening the door. Hs father stepped through into the small apartment, where Ryuuko had dragged the couch out of his room. After him, came his mother. This wasn't going to be pretty.

His parents took their seats on the couch, while he sat on the floor on the opposite side of his coffee table.

"Well, son," his father started. Ryuuko flinched. At least they were getting to the point. "All I can say is that I'm glad you called us as soon as you did. Of course, I trust you contacted the police first?" his father kept his voice stern and low, speaking calmly and slowly. That wasn't a good sign.

"Yes, father. I called the police, then the hospital to follow up, then you. Then, after the police released me after questioning, I came straight home. Haven't left since, or opened my door to anyone except you," he explained.

His mother nodded her approval. "Good. That will show at least some level of awareness for your actions. It may not be much, but they'll look with favor on that. Of course, you'll be tried as a juvenile, so your sentence will be mush less, but assault is a serious thing."

"Oh, great. So much for the Animation Research Club," he groaned.

"Not necessarily," his mother said, wagging a finger. "I AM a lawyer, after all. Now, I can't represent you-"

"Crap," Ryuuko groaned.

"But a third party in my firm can. It's a conflict of interest, honey," she explained. "Now, can you tell us _why_ you assaulted him?"

"No," Ryuuko said shortly. He looked firmly at his parents.

"What?" his father screamed at him. "Why not?"

"I promised that I wouldn't. It's not my place," was all he said.

His mother sighed. "That's not going to help you. I can't provide any assistance at all if we don't have some kind of case. We can't plead insanity, or any mental debilitation of any kind, because we all know you knew what you were doing. What we need to know is _why," _she looked at him pleadingly. "This is important. If you have some kind of justification for your actions, then we can use that."

"I'm sorry, but unless I hear otherwise, it's not going to happen. I don't have the _right_ to tell you why I did what I did. I just hope it worked," he muttered.

"Look, Ryuuko, I-" his mother started, but there was another knock at the door. Ryuuko just got up and walked out of the room, leaving his parents there to stare after him. _What could possibly happen now?_ he thought to himself. Then he made a mental note to not question the power of the universe to screw him over, as he stared through the peephole, and saw two police officers outside his door.

"Ryuosen Ryuuko?" one of them called out. "We need to talk to you!"

He heard his father behind him, urging him not to open the door, but Ryuuko didn't really care at this point. He clicked the door open, and stared at the two officers. "What can I do for you?"

"We need you to come down to the station for some further questioning," one of them explained.

"All, right, but can my parents come with?" he asked.

"That might be a good idea," the other one agreed.

Ryuuko motioned for his mother and father to follow him out, and he was escorted into the back of the squad car, h parents driving behind them.

Ryuuko had expected someone from the school to have stepped forward in Mr. Takasuki's defense, saying something about Ryuuko's character, or having thrown in some other damnable piece of evidence that he was sure he could do nothing about.

What he did not expect, was to see Sakura Ryouo in a back room. He wasn't allowed to speak with her, instead, he was escorted into an interrogation room, where two people sat at a desk, waiting for him. One was an elderly man in a tailored suit, who sat across from him. The other was a stern-looking woman that he had been sat next to, who held a small briefcase.

It didn't take him much to figure out who they were. "Mr. Ryuosen, do you know why you are here?" the gentleman across from him asked.

Before he could answer, the attorney to his left held a hand up in front of him, then whispered into his ear, "Say no. Do not volunteer any information. I will do all the talking."

Ryuuko gave her a sideways glance. "I'm here because I assaulted a first-year instructor on school grounds, and have been brought in for questioning, again."

The attorney's mouth hung open, and the examiner's eyebrows shot up. "What are you doing?" Ryuuko's assigned legal counsel hissed in his ear. He ignored her.

"Well, I can see that you're willing to be honest and straightforward about this. That will make things much easier on you. So, would you say that you are willing to confess to the charge of assaulting a schoolteacher?"

Before he could open his mouth, the attorney interrupted him. "I would like the opportunity to speak with my client in private," she said quickly.

The examiner smiled, nodded his head, and stepped out of the room.

The attorney rounded on him. "Listen, kid. I can get you off the hook on this one, but you have to do exactly as I-"

"Get lost," Ryuuko growled.

The attorney leaned back. "Excuse me?"

"I said, get lost. I don't need help on this one. I assaulted a teacher. I tackled him through a first story window, and punched him in the face until he passed out. That's aggravated assault, and I'm freaking guilty. I don't want to "get off" on this one, got it? You're done." If Ryuuko had fangs, he would have bared them.

The attorney huffed, stood up, and stepped out of the room. Quickly. Then the examiner stepped in. "Do you mind telling me what that was about?" he asked.

"I told her that I was opting to represent myself," Ryuuko explained.

The old man just gave him a brief nod. "I see," he said, taking a seat. "Well, then let me ask you again. Did you want to confess go on record as having confessed to the charge of assault against a schoolteacher?"

"Yes."

The old man looked slightly surprised, but smiled. "Well, then. At least you're honest about it. And I see here," he said, tapping a piece of paper in front of him, "that you were the one who called the police, _and_ the hospital. Remorse, perhaps? Maybe this was a crime of passion?"

Ryuuko shrugged, not saying anything.

The old man closed his folder, and folded his hands in front of him. "Well, then, son, can you tell me _why _you did it?"

Ryuuko opened his mouth to say something, then paused. He had to think about this one. If Sakura was here, then one of two things was happening. Either she was here pressing charges against Mr. Takasuki for sexual assault, in which case his actions would be seen as an act of defense of another, if a bit aggravated, or two, she was here to make his life a living hell again, even after he'd promised her he wouldn't say anything. Either way, he felt justified telling the truth. "He was sexually assaulting another student."

The old man balked at that. "Excuse me? That's a pretty serious accusation, there, kid. DO you have any proof?"

Ryuuko just gave him a look. One that said, _I'm not here to freaking lie to you, so listen up. _"Sakura Ryouo. She can provide witness, testimony, and I'm guessing, physical evidence."

The old man scratched his chin. "I see. We'll have to bring her in for question-"

He was interrupted by the door swinging open, and a female officer saying, "Mr. Makizawa? We have a Sakura Ryouo here who says she's got some evidence on the Ryuosen case." Then she looked at Ryuuko, and her eyebrows shot up. "Oh, uh…" She closed the door.

The old man blinked at the door, then looked at Ryuuko. The kid was smiling.

It had been a few days since the police had brought Ryuuko in for questioning the second time, but he hadn't told his parents anything. He didn't want to make any assumptions until everything was set in stone. Pacing around his living room, waiting for his cell to ring, Ryuuko was going out of his mind. The message he's received in the shower that morning had been from the man who had cross-examined him, and had said something about a call this afternoon with a final verdict. Apparently, Mr. Takasuki hadn't wanted anything to go to court.

That hadn't worked. But Ryuuko hadn't been required to attend, instead, had been allowed to stay in his apartment until a verdict was reached. Albeit, he had an armed officer outside his front door, but he didn't have to go anywhere.

Then his cell phone rang. "Hello?" Ryuuko practically dived for the thing, talking as soon as it hit his ear. "Yes, this is him…. Yes, I understand…. Ok…. Ok…. He what?-Sorry. I just… wow. That's…ok. Ok. Really? So he's-? And she-? So I don't have to-? Yes. Yes, I understand…. Ok. Ok, thank you. Yes, I'll tell him. Yeah, I'll tell her you said hi. Thanks so much. Ok. Ok, bye," Ryuuko had started the conversation as nervous as possible, and by the end of it, was shaking in place. Closing the phone quietly, and stepping up to the door, he knocked. The policeman at the front door opened it.

"Yes?" he said crossly. He obviously didn't want to be here.

"Judge Mishiko says to call in," he told him. The officer raised an eyebrow. "I'll walk to the car with you, if you want," Ryuuko offered.

"No, that's not necessary," the officer said, pulling a radio from his belt. "This is unit **-** calling in, over."

"Unit **-** this is Base, over."

"Base, I've been instructed to call in in regards to Ryuuko Ryuosen, over."

The radio crackled for a second. "Yeah, Unit **-**, you are cleared to leave your post. The kid's been cleared of all charges." The officer stared at Ryuuko, who couldn't stop grinning.

"Copy, Base, will return to headquarters, over."

"Copy, over and out."

"Well, congratulations, kid," the officer said, smiling for the first time since Ryuuko met him. "You must have one hell of a God on your side."

A mental image of Haruhi popped into Ryuuko's head, and he considered telling the officer, 'My God is hotter than your God', but settled for, "Nah, I'm just magic."

The officer smiled, and waved goodbye as he walked away. Ryuuko closed the door, and pulled out his cell phone again. "Hello?" said a deep, muscular voice on the other end.

Ryuuko couldn't resist. Setting the phone to speaker, he yelled into the mouthpiece, "I WIN!"

There was silence on the other end of the line, and he could practically hear his father's ears ringing. "Well, son, that's good news!" the man answered finally. "So, what exactly happened?"

Ryuuko explained in brief detail everything about the day itself that he hadn't told his parents, and some new information the judge had given him. "Apparently, the guy had started teaching at Ryouo under an assumed name. He's a repeat offender, so he got twice the maximum penalty for the offense. Twenty years imprisonment with labor. And since my actions were seen as defense of another, albeit, with Sakura's help, explaining that he had been getting ready to attack her again, I didn't have to pay anything. Of course, since I kind of went over the top, his sentence was reduced to fifteen year, but without parole."

"I see," his father said, quietly. "Well, son, I can certainly understand why you didn't tell us anything in the first place, and I AM proud of you for standing up for this girl, but your actions must merit some kind of punishment." Ryuuko flinched. His father's punishments were always creative. And cruel.

"I'm guessing you already have something in mind?" he hazarded.

"Actually, yes. We weren't going to have you do this if you had been sentenced, either a fine or any amount of labor or imprisonment, but seeing as how you don't have any prior commitments outside of school and your club activities, at least, until you find a job, then your mother and I have come to an agreement," his father explained.

"Are you going to make me move back home?"

"Oh, goodness, no!" his dad said, the warm, suffocating comforting tones he knew returning. "It's just, you know we don't have a lot of room here."

"Yeah…" Ryuuko agreed. He didn't like where this was going.

"And we know you're apartment is a two-bedroom…"

"Yeah…."

"Well, your brother is coming back from America on vacation…"

"NO. Nonononono. No-No-NO! He is NOT staying with me! Anybody else but him!" Ryuuko protested violently. He and his brother had always had issues in closed space. When they weren't around each other all the time, they were fine. But lock them in a box for more than six hours, and there would be blood on the walls. Nobody would know who it belonged to, though.

"Of course not! We wouldn't do that to you!" his father exclaimed. "But since he's staying here, we need someone to go live with you for a week."

Ryuuko sighed. "Great. That works out fine. I'll take anybody but him."

"Good, because we're sending your sister." CLICK.

Next door, as Patricia had started to open the door to her apartment, after a long day at school and work, a blood-curdling scream could be heard echoing through the walls of Ryuuko's apartment.

Ryuuko had just finished running out of air, when he heard a knock at his door. "Please don't let it be her I'm so not ready pleaseohpleasedon'tbeherpleasegod…" Ryuuko rambled, string through the eyepiece in his door. "Oh, thank god."

"Hi, Patty-chan," he said, swinging the door open.

"Hi, Ryuukun, is-is everything ok?" she asked nervously.

"Yeah, sure, why do you ask?" he faked a laugh.

"Well, I just heard a loud scream from your apartment," she explained.

"Oh, that. Yeah, that was me."

"Is everything ok? Sakura-san told us about the issue with Mr. Takasuki, I thought you'd be ok."

He smiled at her. "Yeah, that worked out ok," he told her, then explained his side of the story. Patricia smiled.

"Good. So when will you be coming to school again? Hiyori says the club was really disappointed that you were only there for a day. Of course, she's been so busy with her serial doujin that we haven't seen much of her outside of school," Patricia mused.

"Yeah, that's kind of my fault. Anyway, I should be back next Monday. Although, I have no idea what kind of shape I'm going to be in," he added.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "What does that mean?"

"It means, as punishment for attacking a teacher, even if it was warranted, my parents are making me take my sister in for a week, while my brother uses her room at the dojo."

She nodded, remembering the housing issues that had caused Ryuuko to move out in the first place. "So what kind of person is your sister?"

"She's hell on Earth for anyone whose body produces testosterone," he groaned.

"And what does that mean?"

"It means that he can't deal with a constant stream of hot girls walking in and out of his apartment while his well-endowed sister walks around in her underwear," said a sultry, feminine voice behind Patricia.

The blonde turned around to see a girl shorter than her, with black hair that almost mirrored Ryuuko's, wearing nothing but a tank-top and cutoff jeans, smoking a cigarette and holding a duffel bag over her shoulder.

Ryuuko sighed. "Let me guess, they sent you over before I called, right?"

"You know it," the new girl said. Patricia couldn't help but notice that "well-endowed" was not an egotistical statement. She was simply stating fact. All of a sudden, the well-developed body that Patricia had been so uncomfortable with now didn't seem quite filled out enough.

"_She's_ your sister?" Patricia asked Ryuuko, her eyes wide.

The tall boy just slumped his shoulders. "Patricia Martin, meet Shiki Ryuosen."

Ryuuko heard a loud thud behind him as Shiki threw her bag on the floor, and coughed as cigarette smoke filled his vision. He glared down at his older sister, who just raised an eyebrow and puffed in his face. She gave Patricia a once-over, and grinned. "Hmmm, not bad. Girlfriend of yours, Ryuuko?"

"No," he growled. He snapped the cigarette out of her mouth.

"Hey!" she protested, but he didn't listen. Grabbing a fistful of her shirt, he put the cigarette out in the fabric.

"All right, let's get this straight. Yu don't smoke in my apartment. Ever. Every time I see a cigarette in your mouth, I put it out in your shirt. If you're not wearing one, or I've already burned that shirt, I'll grab one out of your bag. And I know what you spend money on," he added menacingly.

She grunted, and tugged her shirt out of his grip. "Hey, it's not like I volunteered to be here, you know. And when the hell did you grow a set, anyway?"

He opened his mouth to argue, but Patricia cut him off. "Somewhere between getting his own circle of fan girls and tackling a rapist teacher through a first-story window, then punching the guy till he passed out," she said casually.

Shiki's mouth hung open. "You? Popular? Aren't you one of those… whatdyacallems, Otakus?"

Again, Patricia spoke for him. "Yes, he is. And so am I, and the other girls in his circle, as well. Hell, he's even been drawn into a comic."

"Let me guess, one of those guy on guy things? And he's on bottom?"

Patricia faltered, so Ryuuko picked up. "Hey, you'd be surprised at how many girls take to the whole sympathetic emotional male lead. Especially when he plays guitar."

Shiki actually chuckled at that. "Yeah, I forgot you actually did something worthwhile. Looks like you're starting to grow a pair, Komodo-kun."

Patty blinked. "Komodo-kun?"

"Yeah, you know, those lizards who aren't really dragons, but they call em dragons? Maybe I should start calling him Mushu, like from that one English cartoon."

"I just call him Ryuukun," Patty explained.

"I call you all crazy," Ryuuko groaned.

It was getting late into the night, and Shiki, Patricia, and Ryuuko had all gathered around the coffee table. Being a Friday, none of them had any obligations the next day, so they decided to celebrate by killing moonlight.

"So he came into the apartment wearing this total J-Rocker outfit, and Hiyorin and Konata-sempai got nosebleeds!" Patty explained. Shiki burst out laughing.

"I guess he _does_ know how to use what he's got! I've been trying to teach him to be good with women forever!" Shiki laughed.

"Hey, just because you consider the notches on your bedpost your 'annual take home', doesn't mean everyone in the family has to be a raving womanizer," Ryuuko told her, but he was grinning. He was surprised at how good a time he was having.

"So, Patricia-san, do you _have_ a boyfriend?" Shiki asked.

The blonde shook her head. "Not yet, but I'm working on it," she said, giving Ryuuko a look.

"Hey, don't look at me like a piece of meat! Weren't you the one who said we were 'too early in the game to be coming on strong?' And Shiki, don't even think about it. I have enough problems with her next door, I don't need you making it worse," he added.

Shiki just shrugged.

Patricia looked from one to the other. "What are you talking about? What do you mean, 'make it worse?'"

Shiki grinned at her. "Ryuuko's just huffy because I'm a little more.. Active then most girls. And I happen to prefer women."

"Oh, don't be so coy," her brother said. "Patty-chan, don't let her fool you. She's one of those people that would go after a pretty girl at the drop of a hat. And you," he added, pointing at his sister, "practically live in a damn hat factory. I had to sleep in the room next to hers for three years, and it was torture."

Shiki gave him a sultry look. "You could have joined us, you know."

Ryuuko froze. Then he shuddered. Then he shook his head violently. "Ew-ew-ew-ew-ew-ew-ew, HELLZ NO! I am SO not into that kind of thing!" he protested.

Shiki jus shrugged it off. Patricia nodded. "I can see that. Most guys will watch a hentai or read a doujin where the main character is sleeping with his sister, or another relative, but to most guys, they just can't feel that sort of attraction to people they're related to. But there is one thing that confuses me," she added looking over at Shiki.

"Hmm?" Shiki grunted, giving her a sideways glance.

"I thought you said you preferred girls. Wouldn't adding Ryuuko to the action contradict that?"

"I should clarify," Shiki commented, sitting up. "I'm attracted to femininity. Take a good look at my little brother."

"Ok," Patty said, turning towards Ryuuko.

"Can I help you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Ok, now see how he keeps his hair? How he actually pays attention to how he dresses? They may look simple, but I can assure you, everything from his weekend wear to what he puts on for bed to what he strolls around is room in is carefully planned. Now take a look at his physique," Shiki instructed.

"Happy to," Patty joked.

"Ugh," he groaned.

"Take notice on how he's cut. That's not an accident. He built himself that way on purpose. If he wanted to be more masculine, he'd have added more muscle mass. He's certainly capable. But he keeps himself trim, preferring tone and definition to bulk. That's because he knows it plays off of his image, the somewhat effeminate face, the fact that his eyes are a bit wider than normal, his higher-pitch voice. He knows how androgynous he is, but all he does is play off that image. So, for my standards, he's well within the range of what I find attractive. I like guys and girls, but more women fit my preferences then men, which is why I usually go after them," Shiki explained. The entire time, Patricia had been nodding along, adding an "ok" or an "I see" where it would fit. Ryuuko could tell she was taking mental notes. "Of course, so do you," the shorter girl added, giving Patty a coy look.

The blonde girl blushed. "I-I appreciate the compliment, but you're really not my type!" she said quickly.

Ryuuko heaved a sigh. "Oh, thank god. Now I just have to keep you away from the rest of my friends."

Shiki pouted.

The rest of the weekend went by slowly, and with only one or two glitches. Having been turned down by Patricia, Shiki had taken no time in procuring a playmate for the rest of the weekend. Even spending most of their time in Shiki's new room, Ryuuko had been bothered by it. And as a result, had shown up to class on Monday absolutely exhausted.

But nobody seemed to care. This was first made apparent to him by Sakura and her friends approaching him in the front hall, as he was changing his shoes.

"Excuse me," Sakura said, uncharacteristically politely.

Ryuuko looked up. He wasn't in the mood, but given the last time he had seen her, he felt he owed her some courtesy. "What's up, Ryouo-san?"

She was taken aback by that. He supposed she had expected his usual crass behavior towards her. "Well, I-uh, I just wanted to say thanks. I, what you did was really, thanks," she said. Ryuuko got the message.

"Any time. And thanks for backing me up. You really saved me back there," he told her, favoring her with a smile.

She blushed slightly. "Well, I guess that makes us even, then," she added matter-of-factly.

"Guess so. See you later."

"Oh, one more thing," she added, before leaving.

"What's that?" he asked, his hand on his footlocker door.

"Be careful when you open that," she told him, and her and her friends walked off. He blinked at her, and shrugged. But he took a step back as he opened his locker.

And made a note to thank her later, as a few dozen envelopes fell out of compartment, some of them bent slightly from the cramped space they had been in. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me. Please tell me these aren't-"

"LOVE LETTERS!" yelled a familiar voice from off to Ryuuko's left, as he was tackled from his blind spot.

"Oof!" he looked down upon impact to see a large mane of long, blue hair. "Morning, Izumiya-chan."

"Morning, Ryuukyon!" she greeted him with much energy, then let go. "Surprised? Girls have been putting letters in your locker and desk all of last week, ever since Sakura told us all what happened!"

He did a double-take at that. "Sakura told you? Wow. Girl's got guts to do something like that. Of course, she is pretty straightforward," he added as an afterthought. "So how's everyone else?"

As if on cue, Kagami, Tsukasa, and Miyuki all walked up to the two of them. "Hey, Ryuuko. Heard about your hearing. Nice going. My dad's a defense attorney," Kagami explained. Ryuuko gave a slight 'Ah' of understanding.

"Yes, you seem to be a popular topic of conversation," Miyuki said. "I suppose that's what happens when you do something heroic."

"Heroic?" Ryuuko asked.

"Oh, totally!" Konata agreed. "You're so right, Miyuki-san, just like always! He's our new hero!"

Tsukasa clapped her hands and smiled. "It's good to know we have someone big and strong to protect us!"

"Just as long as you stay away from his sister," said a voice behind them. They turned to see Patricia and Hiyorin walking up to them, with two other girls Ryuuko could have sworn he'd seen before.

"Hey, Patty-chan, Hiyorin!" Konata said excitedly, running up to the group. "Hi, Yu-chan, Minami-chan. Oh! You haven't met Ryouo Academy's new hero, have you?" she tugged the two girls by the arm, until they were only a few feet away from Ryuuko. "Ryuuko, this is Yutaka, my cousin," Konata explained, gesturing to the shorter of the two girls, with red hair and pigtails. "And this is her friend Minami," she added, indicating the taller of the two, with shorter, green hair.

Yutaka looked at him for a second, then her yes widened. "Minami-chan, he's that boy from the bus that one day!" she said excitedly, tugging on the taller girl's arm.

Minami stepped in front of her. "If you do anything to hurt Yutaka, I'll make sure you pay for it," she said warningly.

Ryuuko thought about making a snappy comeback, but could see how serious the girl was. So he pulled out an old trick his father had taught him. Bowing his head, and leaning on his knee, he told her, "If that should come to pass, I would hand you the tools to do it with." He stood up, and gave her a small smile. She didn't return it, but it seemed she understood.

"Oh, wow, Hiiragi, I didn't know you knew a real live warrior!" Ryuuko heard an excitable voice from behind him, and braced himself for another Otaku rush. What he saw wasn't really what he was expecting. An athletic girl with short, brown hair, and a more lady-like young girl with long, orange hair (he made a note to keep tabs on these two, they weren't half bad) approached the group. "Nice to meet'cha! I'm Misao Kusakabe, class 3-B! This here's Ayano Minegeshi! But don't get any ideas, she's taken!"

_Damn._ "Well, good to meet you, too. I'm Ryuuko Ryuosen," he greeted them with a bow. Ayano bowed in turn, but Kusakabe just stared at him.

"Whoa! You're the guy that beat the stuffing out of that perverted teacher, right? Way to go!" she exclaimed.

He opened his mouth to respond, but at that point, the morning bell rang. He threw his shoes on, then, noticing he hadn't picked up the pile of love letters, stuffed them all in his bag, shoved his sneakers in his locker, and rushed to class.

Konata hadn't been joking when she'd told him about the letters in his desk. It was as packed as his locker had been. Stuffing those into his bag during break, he took the time to straighten up the chaos of envelopes, and make room for his other stuff.

Classes that day were relatively lively. News that Ryuuko had retuned to school had the whole school buzzing, and between lessons, breaks, and his lunch, people hadn't left him alone. Amidst all the chaos, he was sure he'd received a confession or two from girls he'd never met, and at one point, one girl had planted a kiss on his cheek.

It was driving him crazy. Needless to say, getting back to his club activities was a much-needed reprieve. At least, he'd hoped so, but a soon as he'd opened the door to the clubroom, it exploded.

Somewhat dizzy and more than a little deaf from the outburst of sound, Ryuuko was dragged into the classroom, and shoved into a chair. He looked up to see Kou Yasaka standing over him. "Alright, newbie, here's the deal! We're all very happy that you're back, and proud of you for being the hero, blah blah blah," she mimicked talking with her hand, and rolled her eyes. "But Patty-chan took us a sample of your drawings the other day, while you were away at hero camp." Ryuuko started to protest, but she shut him down. "I'll be frank with you, you suck. But, you're a big deal now. You've got an image. And we already know you don't care if we draw you into a comic. So, you want to be a member of this club?" He thought about actually saying something, but settled with a nod. "Good. Then you get to be our character model."

He blinked. "What?"

"You heard me. You're going to be our model. A lot of girls here have talent, but no practice drawing actual anatomy. So, on school grounds, we're not going to have you take off anything more than your shirt, and maybe wear a pair of shorts, but the basic gist of it is, you're gonna stand there and look pretty while we use your body for practice, and model for our doujins, got it?" Kou rambled on, staring sternly at him, as if daring him to say no.

He looked over from Kou, to a group of girls on his left, who seemed to be eyeing him almost hungrily. One of them seemed to be drooling. Then he realized that was Hiyorin. He waved at her, then looked back to Kou. "Got it. All I have to do is sit here shirtless and look pretty?"

Kou shook her head. "That's just part of it. We're also going to have you try on clothes, acting out certain parts for us, and a few other things that we'll talk about when they come up. Basically, you're a living Ken doll. Good?"

Ryuuko thought about the implications of being a living mannequin for a doujin club, and the fact that it counted as club activities. And that counted towards college. He also thought about what would happen if he tried to say no. He figured a clubroom full of puppy dog eyes would probably destroy him.

"Where do I sign?"

Author's note: If you're wondering why I'm throwing my main character into roles that most Otaku would die for, and only seem to happen to characters in more unrealistic animes, I thought it might be fun to tell the story of being an idol for dozens of fan girls, when A.) You don't want to be, and B.) How much of an inconvenience that kind of popularity actually is.

Keep in mind, this is also conjecture. I have no idea what it's like to be this popular. I wasn't in high school.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: heeheehee, you thought I was being nice to Ryuuko, didn't you? Well, take a look….

Chapter 5: I need cheat codes

"…Excuse me?" asked Shiki. She and Ryuuko sat opposite each other at their coffee table, Ryuuko holding his head in his hands, having, somewhat foolishly, asked his older sister for advice just moments before. "How can you think your life sucks? Really, I want to hear this one explained."

He raised his head halfway, and shot her a glare from under his bangs. "It's actually nice and simple. And devious, in a cosmic conspiracy sort of way. I'm relatively popular now, right?"

"Yes…" Shiki agreed, waiting for him to make a point.

"And I have a somewhat close circle of attractive female friends who all have the same interests I do, right?"

"Yes…" her eyebrow started to twitch.

"And in the last week alone, I've received near half a hundred letters from girls I haven't even met yet, because now I'm some kind of hero. With me so far?"

"Yes. I want to kill your whiny bitch ass, but yes," she growled.

"Here's my problem: How can I safely approach just one girl and tell her I like her without completely destroying my fan base and potentially breaking my friends hearts, all while trying to keep up with club activities and my newly granted social life? And your presence doesn't make this any easier, you know," he added, glancing at the t-shirt and panties combo she was wearing.

She blinked, and thought about it. "Wow, you actually have a point. And here I thought you were just an ungrateful emo. But no, you're screwed!" she said, laughing heartily, and in the process, falling over and knocking her drink off the table.

"Thanks for the words of encouragement, you bitch." He glared at her, then stood up and walked into the kitchen to pour her another glass of water. He didn't allow alcohol in the house, either. "But you can see my problem. Especially with dad on my case, and this being my last year in high school, finding the right girl is more important than ever. But with as many girls as I have with their hearts set on me, there's no way I can be safe choosing just one. And it's not just the whole 'don't hurt their collective feelings' bit. How many of those girls do you think have protective older or younger brothers, or dads like ours? I screw this up, I'm going to have half of the district after me. It's intense."

Shiki wrapped up her laughing fit, and considered her younger brother carefully. "You could always tell them you're gay," she offered.

"Yeah, right. Then I'd blow my chances with the girl I want to go out with, at that point," he said, taking his seat again.

"Do you even have a girl picked out yet?" Shiki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes."

She sat straight up. "Really? Who, who? You gotta tell me!"

"No way in hell. Besides, it's not just one girl. I've got a few different ones that I'm really set on, I just don't know how to choose," he explained.

"Oh, that's easy," she told him.

"And how do I do that?"

"You know how people always say it's what's on the inside that counts?"

"Yeah…"

"Well," she drew out the word, moving over to the couch and stretching out flat. "It's actually what's on the outside that counts, but the inside has final say."

Ryuuko's mouth twitched slightly. "Please god tell me that's not an innuendo for 'sleep with them all, then keep the best'," he pleaded.

"Oh god, no. If I was going to say that, I would. It means, you need to show them what you're really like, then pick the one that likes you best for who you are."

"But they already know what I'm like," he said. "We hang out enough that they've seen me in a relaxed setting, just being me."

"Not relaxed enough. You need to set up a scenario where everybody can be who they truly are when no one's looking. These girls need to see you for your good points, and accept you for your flaws."

Ryuuko pondered that. "That's actually sage advice. Why don't you ever use that?"

"I do, why do you think I'm still single?"

"Ah. But wait, how the hell am I going to set up that kind of a scenario?"

"A sleepover? She's kidding, right?" Patricia gave Ryuuko a weird look, then waved him into her apartment.

"Nope, she's serious. She seems to think that with all the girls I've made friends with lately, that she needs to meet them in a personal capacity. She's even talking about renting a place in the country where there's plenty of room," he sat at her couch, and distracted himself with some random anime that had popped up on the screen. Something about talking dolls.

"Well, I don't think that's such a good idea. Especially if you're thinking of inviting who I think you're thinking of inviting," she pulled a couple of sodas out of the fridge.

"Thanks," he said, taking his. "Look, if it was my idea, I would be doing this differently. And besides, without cigarettes and alcohol for fuel, she's been pretty tame. I haven't seen a girl in our apartment in a week, aside from her and you guys."

"Way to make your point," she drawled sarcastically. "Well, who were you thinking of inviting, anyway?"

"You, Izumiya-chan, Hiyorin-"

"Fine, fine, fine," she commented.

"Kagami-san and her sister-"

"Playing it safe with some kind of enforcer?" she asked.

He nodded. "She can be tough as nails when she needs to be. There's also Yutaka-san and Minami-san-"

"That's where I have to stop you. Having Yu-chan and Minami-chan over is asking for trouble. Especially if there's only one guy there, it won't go over well," she explained.

He wagged a finger at her. "Ah, but that's the point. With someone so innocent and weak there, and a strong girl to protect her, people will be more conscious of the environment. From what I can tell, Izumiya-chan goes out of her way not to corrupt her cousin. And Minami-san will be there to stand up to anyone that tries to mess things up. She seems pretty stern."

Patricia nodded her head. "I see. Well, she's not exactly stern, but she means what she says. I guess you have a point. Who else?"

"Miyuki-san, again, a responsible adult figure. If a bit air headed. Then there's Kusakabe-san and Minegeshi-san."

Patricia tilted her head. "Why them?"

"Because Kusakabe will ensure that no one gets bored, even if things get awkward for whatever reason. And Minegeshi, if she's available, will be a secret adult. She's very ladylike, but I've heard horror stories about her temper," Ryuuko looked proud of this fact.

"Well, I can see you've thought all of this out. Let me guess, Shiki built the invite list, and you justified it?"

"Yeah, kinda," he scratched the back of his head, his secret revealed.

"Ok, that sounds good. I might actually be able to help you make that work. Of course, we may have to stretch the truth on your sister. If we play her age right, we can claim her to be the 'responsible adult' chaperoning the event."

Ryuuko nodded his agreement. "Ooh, that's good. Well, there's just one more person I have to worry about."

"Who's that?"

"Kou Yasaka," he said offhandedly, returning his attention to the screen.

Patricia choked on her soda. "WHAT? You're inviting her?"

Ryuuko practically launched off the couch. "What's wrong, what'd I do, what's up?"

"She's… she's… ooohh…." Patricia growled. "She's a slave driver and a party pooper, not to mention a raging gambling addict. She's drive the party into the ground!"

"Something tells me you don't like her that much."

"Nope, not at all."

Ryuuko thought desperately on how to convince Patty to concede to his idea. Finally, he gave up. It was time to take the otaku route. He hated playing that card. "Ok, you want the truth? This _was_ Shiki's idea, but it's not so she can meet everybody. It's…" he tried to look for the words, while Patricia stared at him.

"It's?"

"She's helping me set up an event scene," he confessed, then flinched. "It's not as bad as it sounds, but that's the best way to describe it. Basically, she wants me to get all of the girls that I really like together in the most relaxed social setting we could think of, so that they can see what they do and don't like about who I really am, not just who I am at school or outside. It's devious and underhanded, I know, but-"

"I'LL DO IT!" Patty exclaimed, pumping her hands into the air. Ryuuko took notice of how the jumping motion interacted well with her t-shirt. Yeah, t-shirt.

"You're sure?"

"Of course! Chances like this are once-in-a-lifetime! The only thing that would make this more fun is if you had some kind of save point!" she ran into her room, and he blinked. "I have to call Konata-sempai! She'll love this idea!"

"_Don't tell her it's an event scene, she'll just-"_

"Hello? Kona-chan? Awesome news! We get to be in an event scene!"

Ryuuko smacked his forehead.

A few hours later, after some mixed calls and planning, Ryuuko was back in his apartment with Shiki, Patricia, Konata, and Hiyori.

"Why did I open my big mouth?" Ryuuko grumbled, sprawled out on the floor. The rest had gathered about the coffee table, chattering excitedly.

"Oh, don't bitch," Shiki barked at him. Ryuuko noted the irony. "We're here to help you get over your girl troubles. Besides, it's not like you have to do any work. Except, of course, planning your moves."

He sat up. "Moves? What happened to 'being your real self, and letting them be the judge?'"

"The rules changed. Now, what's the schedule?" she asked Konata, who had taken charge of planning and a timeline.

"Well, we should start at six, so that the girls have plenty of time to get there, and can finish the other stuff they have to do that day. I say we have dinner at 7:30, and start some kind of movie in the background at 8:00. That way, we have plenty of time to mingle, and whoever wants to help cook gets plenty of time," Konata was on full throttle.

"We should have more than one movie going in the background, maybe a romantic comedy in one room, a horror in another room, and an action move somewhere else. Let's make sure they're all rooms with doors, so that they don't drown each other out," Hiyori added. She was taking notes.

"A horror movie? Is that such a good idea?" Ryuuko asked.

Konata turned back to him. "Look, we're trying to make you look good here, so having a scary movie is perfect. If one of the girls you're after starts watching it, and gets scared, you can be there to comfort them," she explained.

Ryuuko looked to Shiki. "Sis, horror movie? Really?"

"Yeah, why- oh. Oh, that's right," she added, realization dawning on her face. Then, just as suddenly, she acquired a huge grin. "YES! That's perfect! We're so doing the horror movie!"

He fell back to the floor. "Oh, this is going to suck."

"Now," Konata said, hushing them all. "We have one final addition to make to the schedule, and we should set up plenty of time for it. It's the best way to dig as deep as you can, and quickly."

Shiki looked confused, but Patricia and Hiyorin grinned wickedly. "You mean?"

"Yup!" Konata nodded. "That!"

"What's that?" Shiki asked.

"_Truth or dare? Are you stupid?"_ Kagami yelled. It was after class the following Monday, the week of the sleepover. Kagami had taken to the idea well, having been introduced to the concept in the capacity that it was just for Ryuuko's sister to meet everyone, and for Ryuuko to get to know his friends better.

"You don't have to play," Ryuuko told her. "It's just something we wanted to make available in case we had enough people interested. I always liked it."

"No, no!" Konata interrupted. "She _has_ to play! That's the point!"

Ryuuko looked from the blue-haired otaku to the pig-tailed girl. "Look, It would help out a lot if you could come, and I'd really appreciate it. And you _don't have to play,"_ he added, giving Konata a rap on the head.

She frowned, but agreed. "Alright. I'll go. If only to make sure that you don't screw anything up," she added to Konata.

"Waah, everybody's mean to me!" the shorter girl fake-cried. Ryuuko just looked at her.

"Awesome," he said. "Do you know if your sister will be there?"

"She'll have to be. She wouldn't let me go by myself. If only for the fact that she'd think it too much fun to pass up."

"Alright. Now, all we have left is to invite Miyuki-san, and-"

"What about me?" said a light, innocent voice from behind them. Konata wheeled around, and looked ready to say something, but Ryuuko cut her off.

"My sister is setting up a sleepover to meet all of my friends, and is renting a place in the country for the weekend. Do you want to come?" he asked simply.

"Why, that sound delightful! I'll be happy to attend! Who all is going to be there?"

Ryuuko recited the list of attendees they had so far. "I just have to wait to hear from Patty-chan and Hiyorin about Minami-san. Konata already got the okay to bring Yutaka, since we've got an adult chaperone, and several teenagers coming that act like adults."

Kagami glared at Konata. "You told your dad I was coming before you even invited me, didn't you?"

Konata took a page from Patricia's book as she walked away, her fingers in her ears. "I can't understand those difficult Japanese words!"

Kagami growled, and stormed after her. Konata took off running, and they both disappeared around a corner.

Ryuuko sighed, then smiled at Miyuki. "Well, I look forward to having you there, Miyuki-san."

"I can't wait," she added, smiling politely. Ryuuko had to wonder if she already knew what her role was, and was just playing a part.

Getting to Kusakabe and Ayano to ask them was a little more difficult, and Ryuuko only barely managed to get to them on Wednesday, during lunch. "Ok, what do you think?" he asked, having presented them with the overall plan. He left out some details, of course.

"Alright! A sleepover! The one for the track team was really cool, I can't wait for this one!" Misao exclaimed, then started tugging at Ayano's sleeve. "C'mon, Ayano, we have go to! It'll be so much fun!"

"I don't know…" she said nervously.

Ryuuko pulled up a chair next to them. "Hey, it's cool if you're uncomfortable with it, but that's why we're inviting a whole bunch of people. Besides, we're renting a place out by the lake. It's going to be a great sight."

Ayano smiled at him. "Well, I guess I could go. I don't think my folks will mind, if Misao's going. And my boyfriend has club activities all weekend, anyway."

"That's the spirit, Ayano! So, what time should we be there?" Misao asked.

Ryuuko explained to them a basic outline of the schedule.

"Alright," Ryuuko said to himself, on his way to club activities that afternoon. "Just one more person to invite, and-"

"Ryuosen!" said a shrill voice from behind him.

_Oh, sonofabitch,_ he thought to himself. He wheeled around. "What, Sakura?"

The red-haired girl and her friends stepped up to him, and she shoved a finger in his face. "I heard you're planning a sleepover this weekend, in a rented house! Well, I'm officially inviting myself, and my friends!" she told him, posing with her hands on her hips.

Ryuuko thought about that for a split second. "And I'm officially uninviting you. Just because we aren't at each other's throats anymore doesn't mean I have to put up with you outside of school. And besides, my friends are still pissed off at you for being… well, you. You show up, and it goes to hell in a hand basket. Forget that. I have too much invested in this weekend for you to screw it up," he ranted.

She looked more than a little taken aback, and the other two girls balked at him. "How-how dare you?"

Ryuuko was ready to start snapping at her again, but figured it best to not lose his temper. "Look, it's just a bad idea all around, okay? I want this weekend to be perfect, and with you there, that's not going to happen. I get that you don't dislike me anymore. That's great. I actually don't have a problem with you. Hell, you're kinda cute. But the other girls do. And I'm not going to impose on them like that, when I've already busted my ass just to set this up in the first place." He stalked off without another word, and disappeared into his club room.

"Did you hear that?" Hibiki said indignantly.

Kana nodded her head. "I sure did, I can't believe him."

Sakura shook slightly. "Neither can I. He said I was cute!"

The other two face vaulted.

"Okay, everybody, that's a good day's work!" Kou yelled out over the classroom, clapping her hands to draw attention. "I think that's be it for today. Ryuuko, good job today, but work on your lines. If we're going to sell this idea, you've got to show some more spirit.

One of the girls in the back giggled. "I think if he showed any more 'spirit', we'd melt."

Ryuuko stepped down off of the makeshift stage of desks, adjusting his costume. Kou had convinced him to act out a couple of emotional scenes with some of the other girls, so he could model for the comic they were trying to throw together, and sell at the culture festival. "Better now than later," Kou had said.

"Alright. But next time, can I try a scene by myself? It's hard to focus when the other person is blushing so hard you can't see their nose," he said offhandedly. The girl he was doing the scene with was still onstage, a little breathless.

Hiyorin had taken a moment to dry off her nose. "Well, that just means that you're selling it. You don't really think you could do half as well without someone to use your lines _on,_ right?"

"Yeah, but it's kind of uncomfortable hugging a girl I've known for like, two weeks, look her in the eyes, and tell her seriously, 'I've never loved anyone as much as you,' you know."

"Oh, that was my favorite part!" Hiyorin cheered.

"That's just because she passed out from overheating, and you laughed so hard you disappeared under the table," he remarked, taking off the outer robe he'd thrown on over his uniform, and packing his bag. "If I wanted to join the Drama Club, I would have."

"Oh, you know you love it here," Hiyorin said, gathering her artistic tools together. She took precise care with each piece. Ryuuko glanced over at her while she was bent over her bag, and thought to himself, _yeah, yeah I do._

"So, enjoying the view?" said a sharp voice behind him.

Ryuuko wheeled around to find himself face to face with Kou again. "Hey, I uh, what's up?"

She scowled at him for a little bit, then grinned. "Oh, nothing, just wanted to see you sweat. It's not like I haven't done the same thing," she added. Ryuuko blushed furiously. He knew exactly what she meant. She kept stealing glances at him when he was trying to work his way into more difficult costumes. "So, Hiyorin told me you've got a big slumber party planned for this weekend, right? Am I invited?"

"Actually, yeah. I was going to ask you before club, but I got a little hung up. Anyway, what do you say?"

"Great! I'm in! So, who all's going?"

Ryuuko rambled off the guest list for the umpteenth time, but Kou stopped him when Patricia's name came up. "Wait, Patricia Martin? The first year girl?"

"Yeah, why? Don't worry, there's a few first years coming," he explained. She looked awkward.

"Maybe I shouldn't show up, then," Kou said offhandedly. She waved goodbye, and started to walk away.

Ryuuko caught her arm, before he'd realized he'd moved. "Hey, wait! Look, Yasaka-chan-"

"What?" she asked sternly.

He flinched, letting go of her sleeve. "I really kind of want you there, ok? Truth be told, if you hadn't brought it up, I might have been to nervous to ask you. You're kind of intimidating," he laughed.

She smiled. "Really? Well…"

"Oh, come on! I already blew off Sakura when she said she'd wanted to join us, because I knew it would cause problems. I don't want to have to do that again, it sucked. Look, whatever this Patty-chan issue is, I'm sure you guys can work it out! And besides, it's not like you even have to stay in the same room! C'mon, you guys have friends in common, you share a lot of common ground-"

"Ok, Ok! I'll go! Jeez, you really want me there, huh?" Kou added, smiling.

"I want all of my friends there. That's always important to me," he explained. "Thanks, Kou-chan!" he added, running off.

"Friends, huh?" she asked herself, waving him goodbye. Her smile faded slightly. Then it snapped back into place, as another thought dawned on her.. "Kou-chan, huh?"

"You're a freaking evil genius," Shiki told Ryuuko, when he'd reported that all of the girls had signed on for the party.

"Hey, it wasn't that hard. It's actually a pretty good idea. Alright, now I just have to plan out some snacks, drinks, what movies we're watching-"

"-What outfits you're wearing," Shiki interjected.

He did a double-take. "Outfits? What do you mean? I thought-"

"-Exactly. You thought. We're trying to get you with the right girl, remember. What you need are outfits who scream at the top of their lungs, 'Ryuuko Ryuosen!' These girls need to see the real you!"

"But-"

"I know, I know. They've seen your everyday clothes a few times, some more than others. But have they really seen you dressed to the nines? Or in total relaxer-wear? The kind of stuff that most people don't see, but says volumes about a person! Come on, we're digging though your clothes!" she commanded, dragging him to his room.

A few minutes later, all of his clothes were splashed out across the living room, and Shiki was digging violently. "No. No. Maybe," she added, throwing a shirt aside. "No, no, YES!"

"What? What?" Ryuuko asked, then saw her set aside a pair of pants he hadn't seen in awhile. She went back to work.

Another few minutes later, and they (Shiki) had set aside a large portion of clothes, including a few different shirts, pants, even boxers, and thrown the rest back into his dresser. "Ok, now, we're going to have you try on a few different outfits, and see what works for a good Saturday night."

Ryuuko sighed, and subjected himself to being a one-man fashion show for his sister, while they weeded out clothing, a piece at a time. Eventually, she got him down to one single outfit, and set that aside. "Ok, that's a good solid choice. Not to flashy, not too relaxed. Nice and stable. Now, for Sunday wear," she added, taking a seat again. She pointed at another pile of clothes, and Ryuuko heaved a sigh.

"This is going to take all night, isn't it?"

"Aren't you glad it's Friday?"

After several hours of detail on his clothes, the movie selection, snacks, and everything else Ryuuko could think of to set up ahead of time, he collapsed onto the now-empty couch.

"Well, we have one more piece for you to worry about, but don't worry, you don't need to try it on. I already know it fits you," Shiki explained, grinning wickedly.

"Oh, god. What now? We've already got Saturday AND Sunday!" Ryuuko groaned.

Shiki wagged a finger at him. "Yes, but what about the in-between?"

"What? Oh, hell. Not that. I will kill myself if you tell me-"

"That you're wearing this for the slumber part of the party?" Shiki asked, holding up a single piece of clothing.

"God, where did you find that? I thought I hid that away yesterday! They can't know I wear that! The horror movie thing is bad enough."

Shiki laughed. "Oh, what happened to 'showing them your true self, and letting them make a decision?'"

"There's a difference between true self and mortifying secrets!" he wailed.

"Oh, come one. I think it's cute!"

"That's because you bought it for me!"

"And yet you wear it almost every night," she purred. He shuddered.

"And here I thought this was going to go so well. Can I reload the scenario yet?" he asked no one in particular.

Finally, the day came. _Like it or not, _Ryuuko thought to himself, as he, Shiki, and Patricia piled into Shiki's car. "Shiki, can't we talk about-"

"You're wearing it," she told him, then revved the engine.

Patricia looked from Ryuuko to his sister. "What's going on? What are you wearing?" she asked.

Ryuuko just shook his head. "Let's just get there and set up. We've got to get the snacks and drinks put up, rearrange some of the furniture, and I have to get dressed."

Patty raised an eyebrow. "Get dressed? Is that what-"

"Nope," Shiki interrupted. "So, let's talk about something else. Hey, Martin-san, did you get the movies we needed?"

Patty raised a plastic bag out of her duffel. "Yup, right here. So, where is this place, anyway?"

Her question went unanswered, at least for a few moments, until they pulled up to the house. A moderate two-story with a large yard and plenty of trees surrounding it, it wasn't a bad place. Except for the unexpected vehicle in the driveway.

It was an innocent enough green four door, but the issue rested with it's occupants.

"Izumiya-chan? Hiyorin?" Ryuuko asked, dumbfounded. Yutaka and Minami stepped up from behind them, along with a girl with green hair Ryuuko didn't know. Then he heard a small squeak behind him. Without turning around, he asked, while waving at the girls, "Shiki, who the hell is that?"

"O-officer Y-y-Yui," she stammered.

He wheeled on her. "An officer? What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything, I swear!" she said defensively, holding her hands up.

"She's telling the truth, that's not why I'm here," said a voice behind him. He turned around, and the girl with green hair held out a hand. "My name's Yui Narumi. I'm Konata's cousin, and Yutaka's older sister."

Ryuuko felt his eyebrow twitch. "Ok, nice to meet you. Why are you girls here so early?"

"Well, I'm here to offer you an ultimatum, young man," Yui said sternly. The raven-haired teen swallowed hard.

"Ok…" _son of a goddammit, this can't be good._

"Either I attend this sleepover as a chaperone, or my cousin and little sister don't attend."

He blinked. "Huh, not as bad as I thought. Hell, that actually helps out a bit. I was a little concerned that Shiki here would be the only adult. And if she knows you by name, then you must know what I mean," he added, laughing.

"Hey!" said an offended voice from behind him.

"Oh, hush," he told her. "So, you're Konata's cousin? Small world. So what did she do that she knows you by name?"

"Oh, not much. We just had to impound her car once, and I gave her a ride home," Yui explained. Ryuuko saw Konata and Yutaka shiver, and Minami went slightly pale.

"That's not so bad," he said. "Want to come help us set up?"

"Sure!" she said excitedly, then ran up to the porch.

Ryuuko leaned towards the other girls. "She can't drive, can she?"

Konata, Shiki, Yutaka, and Minami all shook their heads violently.

Author's Note: This chapter is a bit shorter than I wanted it, but next chapter should be pretty big. I have a lot planned for the sleepover. At least, as much as I'm willing to plan ahead. I'd thought of the sleepover idea as of the end of page 1. Way to go, foresight, huh? Also, I know some of the spellings for names in this may be wrong, like Ryouo Academy, automated to that mistake in chapter 1, I decided to keep it that way.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Well, let's have some fun!

Chapter 6: Slumber Party, Part 1

With more people to work with then originally planned, the Ryuosen siblings and Patricia had a much easier time of setting up the party. Of course, the additions to their planning crew also caused them some problems. Namely, Konata's tendency to interfere with any process that remotely resembled working, and Yui's habit of disturbing anyone she could to keep herself entertained.

In the end, they ended up working on about the same schedule. Yutaka and Minami were surprisingly efficient, even if Yutaka was limited to very light chores and some of the planning. Minami had made it a very clear point that she didn't want Yutaka to work any more than she had to.

This point was made the clearest about an hour before people had started arriving. Shiki had decided to rearrange the living/dining room so that the main table stretched across the majority of the room, with the entertainment center on one end and a bay window with a view of the lake on the other. Of course, moving the table by herself had proven to be relatively daunting, so she had enlisted Ryuuko and Konata to help. However, the sheer awkwardness of the thing had caused them some problems.

So, she turned to the rest of the people in the room. "Hey, Patricia-san, little help here?"

The blonde girl turned her head, having been working on setting up some of the games and videos. "Sorry, but I've got to get these set up soon, some of it needs to get booted up and tested before we use it. I want to make sure transporting this stuff didn't mess any of it up."

Shiki mumbled something to herself, then turned to Yui. "Hey, Officer, want to help us out here?"

The older woman looked over from the kitchen. "Sorry, but we've got a lot of snacks to cook up before people start arriving. Besides, we don't really need the table moved anywhere, it looks good."

Ryuuko heard her mutter something about aesthetics before she turned over to Minami and Yutaka, who were setting up some brighter decorations, flowers, cloth, and providing an overall woman's touch. "Hey, can either of you two help me out here? We need some more people to move this table. It's too bulky for just us."

"Um, sure," Yutaka said nervously. "I don't know how much help I'm going to be, though."

"I'm sure you'll do fine," Shiki said offhandedly, then pointed her to a corner. "Now go ahead and lift that."

"I'll do it," said Minami, stepping in front of Yutaka.

Shiki just glanced up. "I'm sure she can handle it, just-"

"I said I'll do it," Minami stated firmly. There was no doubt in her voice that anyone was going to tell her otherwise. Shiki kind of shrunk back a little, and just nodded.

Ryuuko and Konata exchanged glances, and Konata whispered, "Minami-chan is very protective. I'd advise that whenever the subject of Yu-chan comes up, that you take Minami's word as law."

Ryuuko nodded, and made a mental note to himself that the girl could be intimidating if she needed to be. He also noted that the sense of older-sister/little-sister moe could extend to people who weren't related. He glanced over to Konata, and was about to share his opinions, when his older sister decided to exercise her aura of dominance over someone that would listen. "Hey, Ryuuko, stop flirting with your midget and lift!" Ryuuko felt his face burn at the innuendo, and nodded.

Soon, they had the living room set up the way Shiki had wanted it, after a few changes here and there, and had settled in to wait for the guests. Patricia and Konata had taken opposite sides of Ryuuko on the couch, while Minami and Yutaka had taken, somewhat appropriately, Ryuuko thought, a loveseat in the corner. Shiki and Yui were sitting in the kitchen, working on the rest of the refreshments.

"So, what all did you girls want to do this weekend?" Ryuuko asked the group at large, hoping that keeping the conversation normal would avoid any awkward statements from his otaku friends.

"Truth or dare!" Konata shouted excitedly. "We should get everyone to play it!"

They heard a voice chime in from the kitchen. "Just make sure to keep things somewhat appropriate, Kona-chan," Yui said.

"Don't worry, don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Konata assured her. Which greatly reduced everyone else's assurance levels.

"Maybe we could do some karaoke," Patricia suggested. Ryuuko glanced over at her, and saw that she was staring at him slightly.

"You're relentless. I told you I don't like playing in public, the rock-shonen incident should be indicative of that," he groaned.

He could almost hear Konata grinning from his other side. "But you have to do it! You're such a good singer! You have to sing for us! We're all going to, anyway. At least, most of us," she added, and Ryuuko looked over to see her staring over at Minami. "She doesn't like to stand out very much."

"I can understand that," he agreed. Then he remembered a thought he'd had earlier. "You know, her and your cousin seem to have this great sense of older-sister/little-sister moe, don't they?"

Konata looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded. Patricia agreed. "That's a good point. I didn't really think about it from that angle, but that's a great perspective," Konata mused.

Patricia grinned. "No wonder Hiyorin has to actively stop herself from using them as doujin material."

Ryuuko did a double take. "What, really? Are they like, you know, _those?_" He raised an eyebrow at the blonde girl.

"No, no. She has enough self-restraint to not do that. She uses you for those," she grinned.

"Why did I ask?" he muttered. He looked up, to find Shiki standing over him, a suspicious grin on her face.

"YOU. Need to get changed," she told him, shoving a finger in his face. His shoulders slumped, and he stood up without a word, walking off. Shiki followed happily.

Konata and Patricia traded looks. "Wonder what they're up to?" Patricia wondered, but at that point the doorbell rang. Konata jumped up, and ran to the front door. She took a glance out the window next to the door, then threw it open and launched herself outside.

"Kagamin!" she exclaimed, throwing herself into the taller girl's arms. Kagami blushed, and started to splutter, "Ko-ko-Konata? What are you doing here? I thought we'd beat you here for sure!"

"Oh, Kagamin, we got a ride from Yui! She's going to help chaperone," she explained, then looked around. She saw a few other girls around her, and greeted them. "Hey, Tsukasa, Kusakabe-san, Minegeshi-san! Hey, who drove?"

"I did," said a feminine voice behind the group. Kagami stepped aside to reveal Miyuki, just stepping out of the van. "My mother had me take my driver's test over the winter break, and Kagami asked if I could be their chauffer."

Kagami stepped inside, taking everyone's coats, and laying them on a chair. "I didn't want my dad driving us, he'd probably rip Ryuuko a new one. He wasn't entirely keen on the idea, but my mom talked him down. She likes the idea of me spending more time out of the house."

After all of the new arrivals had greeted each other, and they'd all settled in, they gathered around the table to discuss the evening's events. After a few moments, Yutaka looked around, and asked, "Where's Tamura-san?"

Patricia looked up from her discussion with Konata. "She said Kou's older brother would be driving them in. Hiyorin spent the night at Kou-san's house so they could work on club activities." She sighed to herself. "I still don't know why Ryuuko wanted to invite her, anyway."

Konata glanced at her. "He seems to talk about her a bit. I think he likes her quite a lot."

A few girls looked up at that, but Patricia shrugged it off. "Yeah, but he talks about you and Hiyorin quite a bit when we hang out, and from what Hiyorin tells me, I come up every once in a while during club hours, and it's usually him that starts it."

"Well, that's interesting," Kagami said. The majority of attention was directed to her. "He seems to have an interest in quite a few girls. I seem to remember a few conversation's I've had with him where he asks me about Misao," she grinned, looking over at the fanged brunette. Kusakabe's ears popped up.

"Really? What would the delinquent want with me?"

"He's not a delinquent!" exclaimed Tsukasa. "And besides, that doesn't mean anything. I've talked to him about sis and Miyuki plenty of times."

"Yes, and he occasionally asks me about Konata-san, Tsukasa-san, and Kagami-san," Miyuki explained.

Yui scratched her chin. "So what's he up to?" She was about to say more, when the door made some more noise. Minami stood up. "I'll get it," she offered. She walked up to the door and glanced out the window, then opened the door. "Hello, Tamura-san, Yasaka-sempai," she greeted the newcomers.

The two girls stepped in, followed by an older boy with blonde, short hair, wearing an olive green tank top, camo pants, and a matching jacket.. Minami looked a little taken aback. "Oh, sorry, I won't be here long. My name's Yasaka Kenji. Nice to meet you." Some of the other girls said hi, but he didn't step into the room very far. "So, I here there's only going to be one boy at this party?" He glanced over to his little sister. "I hope he's dependable."

She waved him off. "Oh, he's fine! Ryuuko-sempai's a good guy. He's like the school's hero!"

Kenji did a double-take. "Ryuuko? You wouldn't happen to mean Ryuuko Ryuosen, would you?"

Before anyone could answer, a voice yelled from the stairs, "Oni-kun!" followed by a blur of black hair and clothes that launched itself at Kenji. "I can't believe you're here! What're you doing out here?" Shiki asked.

Kenji grinned. "Good to see you, Keychain."

Konata raised an eyebrow. "Keychain? Why the English nickname?"

"My old nickname was Ki-chan," Shiki explained. "My older brother thought it would be funny, and Kenji made it stick."

Kenji ruffled her hair. "So, where's Ko-kun?"

Shiki gestured grandly to the stairs, and everybody's gaze followed to the second floor landing. "Come on out, bro!" Shiki yelled.

"I still don't understand why we're making such a big deal out of this," he said, stepping out from around the corner.

The ensuing silence was impressive.

He was dressed somewhat casually, but the outfit was obviously carefully selected. A simple black button down t-shirt with a collar, from which a simple silver chain led into his chest pocket. The shirt itself had been tailored slightly, so that the stitching along the sleeves, sides, and around the buttons were done in dark blue thread. It matched his plain blue tie nicely. The black cargos he was wearing were stitched the same way. To complete the outfit, he'd donned his black cadet hat, a pair of black leather boots, and matching arm warmers. His hair was left disheveled so that it fell nicely around his face.

Kenji was the first one to say anything. "Dude, I hate you. You're the only guy I know who dresses like a Goth that I _don't_ want to punch in the face."

It was Ryuuko's turn to do a double take. "Fallout Boy! What's up?" he shouted, and sprinted down the stairs, two at a time. When he reached Kenji, the older boy grabbed him in a headlock. "Not the hair, NOT THE HAIR!" he shouted, but he was laughing.

Kou looked thoroughly confused. "How the hell do you all know each other?"

Ryuuko broke loose, still smiling. "Kenji here was at the dojo for a couple of years, and we studied Mui Tai together. He tried to get me started on Capoiera, but I wasn't limber enough for it."

Kenji laughed. "No, but you've got a shoulder throw that can flatten a bear! Akido _and_ Judo? That's overkill, man."

Ryuuko grinned sheepishly. "So, are you staying?"

"Nah, I get the feeling I'd be crashing the party hard. Besides, the only guy in a houseful of girls? No way I'd deprive you of that opportunity," the blonde boy grinned.

Ryuuko blushed furiously. "It's not like that, dude!"

"Wow, he's still _that_ easy to bait?" Kenji asked Shiki.

She just nodded. "But you have to stay! It's going to be so much more fun! Besides, we haven't seen you in years, you can't just walk out on us!"

Kenji looked around to the rest of the group. "Does anyone else mind?" he asked. The general consensus was that he could stay, so he and the rest of the new arrivals, plus their hosts, took their seats at the table. Even Yui agreed.

"It'll be nice to have more adults in the house. So, what's with the camo? Are you military?" she asked.

Kenji shook his head. "Nah. Present from the eldest Ryuosen sibling. He and I have been sending crap back and forth for ages. When he went off to America, I took a year or so to backpack through Europe. Just got back last month," he told the other Ryuosens. "Well, if I'm staying, I hope you've got enough spare clothes for me," he told Ryuuko.

The other boy nodded. "Got it, we should have some spare clothes that Kiba left behind before he left, you're about the build he was a few years ago."

Konata glanced over at him. "I thought you said you were renting this place?"

Shiki shook her head. "Nah, this is Ryuosen property. I think our uncle Kobi owns this one."

Most of the girls looked taken aback, except Minami and Miyuki. "Yes, I believe I have a few relatives with multiple properties."

"Ok," said Konata, clapping her hands. "So, what's the official plan for tonight?"

Patricia started ticking off the events on her fingers. "Well, dinner is in an hour, Minami and Yutaka had set everything up earlier. We've got some movies starting at the same time, in a few different rooms, so people can watch while they eat. The truth or dare game starts at 9:00-"

"Wait, wait, wait. Truth or dare?" Kenji interjected. Then a wild grin spread across his face. "Oh, man, Ryuuko, you are toast if I get you!"

Ryuuko shuddered. "Great. Something to look forward to."

Patricia ignored them "We've got the karaoke machine set up for people who want to play that after the game, and for the game itself."

Kagami raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Konata took point. "Well, we're not playing just regular truth or dare, that's boring. Me and Patty-chan extended the list. It's now Truth, Dare, Double Dare, Challenge or Karaoke."

Ryuuko glanced at her. "Someone want to explain those last three?"

Hiyori raised her hand. "It's one version that we've played before. Double Dare means that the person dared can extend the dare to a second person, by spinning the bottle again. Challenge, means that the person who spun can ask a truth, then ask a dare based on the answer. Karaoke means that the person who spun can have the person the bottle pointed to sing whatever song they want, as long as we have it to play."

Ryuuko smiled at that. "Oh, don't worry. If there's a karaoke version of the song, we have it. That karaoke machine is mine. It's got an internet connection and a modified hard drive, and I've got over 100 gigs of music on it."

Konata smiled at him, and snapped a thumbs up. "Good Job!"

Dinner itself was a relatively calm affair, the meal being mainly comprised of finger foods, as the girls split into different groups to watch their movies. Ryuuko and his sister sat with Kenji and Yui at the table, trading stories.

"So, you actually know her?" Kenji said to Shiki, pointing at Yui. "That's hysterical. I can't believe Officer Narumi busted you for something, too!"

Shiki shook her head. "She didn't bust me, she just gave me a ride home one day. And what do you mean, too?"

Kenji waved a hand at her. "It's nothing. I tagged a car with spray paint on my last round of truth or dare a couple of years ago, and Yui-san here, being a traffic cop, caught me in the act. But it was good fun, the stuff washed right off, and I took the daughter of the car's owner out on a date."

Ryuuko's head slumped. "I can't believe it. Still a relentless skirt chaser?"

Kenji laughed. "Yeah, yeah. I used to be, but I've got a girlfriend waiting for me in Okinawa. She's going to fly up here in the summer, we've been keeping in contact online. But hell, you're not any better. A houseful of pretty girls?"

"Would you get off of that? You know how hard it is for me to make friends with guys? It's not about that," he argued. Then he sighed. "But you're not _entirely_ wrong, I've got a few girls that I like. But I'm not trying to climb into every skirt that smiles at me, unlike some people," he gave Kenji a sly look.

"Well, good to know you're not a total fruit," the blonde boy remarked.

At that point, Konata poked her head around the corner. "Ryuukyon! Come on, you're missing the best part of the movie!"

Ryuuko stood up, and made for the hallway, but Kenji caught his shirt. "Dude, where're you going? We still have a lot of talking to do!"

Shiki smacked his hand. "Let the kid go, it's his party."

Kenji gave her a look, but let him go. "Whatever, man. See you at the game tonight."

"Yeah, sure," Ryuuko grinned, then walked off.

Kenji turned to Shiki. "What was that about?"

She leaned in to his shoulder. "Remember when he said he had a few girls he liked?" she whispered.

Kenji raised an eyebrow, and whispered back, "The midget, really?"

"Hey, she's a fellow otaku. A few of the girls are, and they've been pretty good to him. She's a lot of fun to hang around with, if a bit unreliable in school."

Kenji just leaned back. "Hey, whatever. So, Yui-san, what's your relation to everybody?"

As it turned out, Konata, Kusakabe, Kou and Kagami were all watching the horror movie Patricia had picked out: The Haunting in Connecticut. Somehow, she'd tracked down a copy with Japanese subtitles.

And, of course, Ryuuko had been roped into watching the one movie he hadn't wanted to. "Is this really necessary?" he asked quietly, as he watched while the older brother character on screen spun his younger brother on a mortuary table, while he himself was having a hallucination. Ryuuko flinched whenever the screen flashed between the older boy and another teen, supposedly from the house's past.

Nobody seemed to notice. "Whoa, look at him go!" Kusakabe yelled. "I'd go on that table in a heartbeat!"

Kagami looked bemused. "As long as I get to spin you. It'd be nice me giving you the headache for once."

Konata just looked between them. Ryuuko noticed the movement, and looked over. She didn't seem like she liked the joke. Ryuuko nudged her. "Hey, you ok?"

Konata looked up at him, and her grimace turned into a smile just as quickly. "I'm fine," she whispered. "Hey, are you ok? You look a little peaked."

Ryuuko stole a glance at the screen, just in time to see a shadow appear over a mirror. He jumped. "I-I don't do horror movies very well."

Konata scooted up to him. "Ah, you'll be fine. If anything comes at you, you can tackle it through a window," she joked.

He laughed nervously. "Yeah, I guess so. Hey, I'm going to check out the other movies, ok?"

Konata just shrugged, and returned her attention to the screen.

The next movie viewing he came across was Patricia and her classmates watching some action movie he didn't recognize. He poked his head in long enough to make sure everyone was entertained, and was sufficiently hushed. He decided to leave them at it.

His final stop was Miyuki, Tsukasa, and Ayano watching a romance movie that Ryuuko vaguely recognized as being based off of a book that Shiki owned. He guessed she was the one who recommended it. He noticed that it had just started, even though the other girls were maybe a half-hour into theirs.

"What's up girls? Why the late start?"

Tsukasa glanced up. "Well, Miyuki and Ayano had brought a couple of movies, too, so we took some time to choose." She patted the spot next to her, so he settled in between her and Miyuki, and settled in to watch.

Not even a half-hour into the movie, and Ryuuko heard a knock at the door. He turned his head to see Shiki poking her head into the room, asking, "Hey, you girls liking the movie?" Then she blinked. Ryuuko noticed that the other girls hadn't turned to answer her, and they all had tears streaming down their faces. Ryuuko reached up and touched his cheeks, and his fingers came back damp. He looked back up to his sister.

"Sis, I'm going to have to borrow that book from you sometime."

She gave him a weird look, but nodded, and closed the door quietly.

After the movie was over, Ryuuko and the girls spent some time discussing it. "I can't believe how they ended it. That was so unfair," Ryuuko groaned. Tsukasa and Ayano were leaning on each other, having cried their eyes out for a moment. Patricia was leaning on Ryuuko's arm, and still had some tears streaming down her face.

"I know, and the violin pieces they used were so moving," Tsukasa sobbed. "I mean, he spends all of this time to save her, to wake her up from her coma, and she loses her love for him? It's so unfair! Stuff like that shouldn't happen for people like them."

Ayano nodded along. "But it was a very good story. I have to admit that it was very powerful."

Ryuuko felt Patricia nodding along his arm. "Yeah," was all she said.

He looked around at the girls. "Hey, how about we go set up for the truth or dare game? Maybe we should plan some stuff ahead for some of the other guys," he wasn't sure how well his attempt at cheering them up would take, but it seemed to work pretty well.

Patricia sat upright, slowly, and grinned a little. "Yeah, I've got some things I want to learn about everybody, maybe we could set up a list of things to ask if we get any of them."

The rest seemed to agree with that.

"Alright, everyone, here are the rules!" Shiki accounted. She set a piece of paper and pencil in front of her, and made some notes. "We've got two points for a truth, four for a dare, five for a double dare to each person, six for a challenge, and three for a karaoke. We each spin the bottle when it's our turn, and the person it points to gets to choose what they're doing. Obviously, the incentive for the more challenging stuff is more points, and the most points at the end of the hour and a half wins!"

"So what's the prize?" Tsukasa asked. Everybody turned to look at Shiki.

"Uh… what?" she blinked. "Prize?"

Ryuuko face palmed. "Really? You forgot to set up a prize? All right, all right. Last time I played, we let the person who won get any other player with anything on the list. Didn't matter, truth, dare, challenge, they had to do it."

Kenji laughed. "Hey, I remember that! Wow, you haven't played for awhile! Yeah, last time we played, you got dared to play F.E.A.R. for two hours. Never seen you shake so bad!"

Ryuuko shuddered. "I HATE that game. Freaking little girl in the red dress. What the hell?" he grumbled.

The rest of the group nodded. They seemed to like that idea. "Ok, who's going first?" Konata asked.

"First off," Ryuuko stopped her. "Who's playing?"

The only people that seemed to back out were Yui and Shiki. "I can't let myself play, I'm keeping score! I'd be a partial scoreboard," Shiki rationalized.

Yui just shook her head. "I want to make sure I can keep an eye on you guys, so I'm sitting back here," she explained, settling into a recliner.

Ryuuko nodded at them. "Anyone else?" the rest of the girls, and Kenji, just stayed put around the table. Shiki rolled the bottle, then took a step back, letting them close the circle. Misao was the first to choose. She spun the bottle heartily, and it nearly spun off the table. After spinning it again, it just pointed back to her. She looked around, laughed, and spun it again. It pointed to Patricia.

She thought about it. "Let's start off with something good! Double Dare!" she exclaimed, and reached out for the bottle, spinning it skillfully. It pointed over to Hiyori.

"Well, I guess it wouldn't be that bad, ok, I'm in!" Hiyori said.

Kusakabe laughed, and rubbed her hands together. "Ok, I dare you two to… to… pick your nose and eat it!"

Patricia and Hiyorin glanced at each other. Then they both burst out laughing. "That's disgusting!" exclaimed Patty. Saving the details on the act itself, they had no actual issue performing the deed, but needless to say, most people were glad they'd eaten over half an hour ago.

Patricia looked over to Hiyori. "Ok, who gets to go next? We both did the dare."

Shiki jumped in. "Patricia-san chose Double-Dare, so she gets to spin next. But you both get points!" she added. Hiyorin nodded in agreement.

"Ok!" Patty yelled. She took another spin at the bottle. It pointed at Kou.

You could literally cut the tension with a knife, as the two blonde girls looked at each other. Patricia didn't say anything, so Kou just told her, "Let me do a Karaoke, ok?" Ryuuko noticed Hiyori and Kenji flinched.

Patricia nodded. "Sure, that sounds good. Let's see, what song… Ooh, how about Candy Line, from Gintama?"

Kou nodded, smiling. "Ok, that's good." She stood up, and hunted through the machine's database, then tracked down the song. The rock intro tuned up, and Kou prepped herself…

And the rest of the group flinched. As it turned out, the blonde gambler couldn't sing very well. She got all the words right, but her pitch sucked, and her voice cracked continuously. By the time she was done, most of the group was covering their ears, all except for Hiyori and Kenji, who had braced themselves earlier.

She sat down, scratching the back of her head. Her friends reactions hadn't gone amiss to her. "I know, I know. I'm not that good." She shrugged it off, and spun the bottle again. It pointed to Miyuki.

The pink-haired girl smiled nicely up at her. "Oh, it's my turn? Ok, I guess I'll go with something simple. How about truth?"

Kou thought about it for a second. "Ok, Miyuki-sempai. Do you have a crush on someone?"

Everyone turned their heads towards the role-model student. Konata and her friends had always wondered, but never thought it appropriate to ask her.

"Why, yes." she said simply, and smiled.

"Ooh, who?" Kou pressed.

"I believe I already answered a question, correct?" Miyuki asked politely. Kou opened her mouth to speak, then closed it, defeated. Miyuki smiled again, then span the bottle herself.

It pointed back to Misao. "Alright! Dare me!" she said excitedly.

Miyuki thought for a moment. "Oh, ok! I remember something funny that one of my friends did in elementary school. The teacher had them spin around in circles until they were dizzy, then sing the national anthem! You should do that!"

Misao looked slightly disappointed, but shrugged it off. "Aw, that's easy! I'll be getting these points for free!" She moved into the center of the room, and started to spin. Konata and a few others started cheering her on.

"Go, go, go, go!" they chanted, watching her become a tiny tornado. She stopped suddenly, and nearly keeled over, but recovered herself with great skill. She looked over at the group, wobbly and smiled stupidly.

"Alright, here I go!" And she started singing. Truth be told, it was most likely the most amusing that Kagami and Ayano had ever seen her. They toppled out of their chairs in laughter, and the rest of the group was in tears. She was jumbling lines together, mashing some words and skipping others, and constantly tripping over herself. But all in all, she looked greatly amused.

By the time she was done, a great deal of the group couldn't breathe for laughing, and Yi chimed in, "That was so good! I tried that once after I'd had a little to drink, but watching it is so much more fun!"

Misao stumbled back to her seat, and spun the bottle again, but stumbled on that, too, and it kind of flopped a little. This time, it pointed to Minami. The green haired girl thought it over a little, having developed a small strategy in her mind. "Ok, Challenge," she said simply.

Misao was taken aback, as was the rest of the group, as the normally quiet girl chose the highest point value on the list. She took her time thinking about it, then settled on something she thought was really good. "Ok, Minami-san. I got one," she grinned evilly, and a few girls looked at her. Kenji leaned over and nudged Ryuuko.

"I think this is going to get good," he whispered. Ryuuko just nodded slightly, totally absorbed. He loved dramatic moments.

"First, your truth. Do you have a crush on anyone in the room?" Misao asked.

Minami stopped for a second, then nodded. "Y-yes," she answered nervously, blushing heavily. Ryuuko did a double take. _Oh, please oh please don't let it be me, I barely know her, please oh please…_ his train of thought trailed on.

Misao rubbed her hands together. "Okayyy….. Now for your dare. I dare you…" she drew it out dramatically, but Minami didn't waver. "I dare you to kiss the person you have a crush on."

Minami was taken aback, and started to blush deeper, if that was possible. "Um… uh…. Ok.." she said slowly, and stood up. Ryuuko noticed that her hands were shaking.

Yutaka grabbed her sleeve. "Minami-chan, don't be embarrassed, I'm sure whoever you've chosen to love is a wonderful person, and they're lucky to have you," she said sweetly. Ryuuko saw Minami's resolve strengthen intensely. Ryuuko's train of thought derailed, and boarded a new car. _Please do it do it do it doitodoit, please for the love of otakus everywhere do it…_ he was chanting in his mind, partially for the sheer moe factor of it, and partly because he wanted to see an act of true love, or what he thought was true love, especially after the movie he'd watched.

Minami nodded, and turned her gaze down to her red-headed friend. She placed her hands on Yutaka's shoulders and said, "Thank you." Then she leaned in and kissed her.

"YES!" Ryuuko jumped up and pumped his fists into the air. Then he stopped, and looked at the other members of the group. Most of the girls were blushing, but he noticed a few specific reactions: Patricia was glowing, smiling radiantly at her friends. Konata was smiling almost as brightly. But when he saw Hiyori's reaction, he nearly fell over. She had a nose bleed so bad he thought she might have to take her to a hospital. "Hiyorin, are you ok?"

At that point, a few other girls noticed the black-haired girl's condition, and rushed her some napkins. A couple of minutes later, things had settled down. Hiyori had stopped her nosebleed, and washed her face off, and the other girls had settled down a bit. Aside from her outburst of affection, Minami hadn't moved much at all. But not because of anything like shame or disappointment. Yutaka at first had been quite surprised, but no one was surprised when she had responded to the kiss with enthusiasm.

Minami wasn't moving because Yutaka was now sitting in her lap, smiling warmly, and even humming a little.

Once peace had been restored, Ryuuko decided to bring up a good point. "Ok, before we continue with the game, I think we should address the last dare a little. I know it's all exciting and great to see two people who care for each other so much admit their feelings for each other, but I want to make sure this isn't going to affect people negatively," he explained, looking around. He glanced over at Yutaka and Minami. Minami nodded, and Yutaka smiled at him. "Ok, then. I think we should each take a turn to say our thoughts on the matter."

Minami nodded. "Ok. I mean, I am happy about this, but I honestly don't know what my parents will think. We've never really talked about it."

Yutaka hugged her from behind. "It'll be okay. I'll talk to them with you, if you think it will help. I don't think my family will mind. Yui, do you care?"

The officer shook her head. "Not a bit! Matter of fact, Konata and I had a bet going on when you two would get together!"

Yutaka blushed crimson. "What? Konata-onee-chan!"

Konata chuckled. "Oh, come on. I know how much you dote on her, it was only a matter of time."

Yutaka didn't say anything, but smiled to herself. Then she looked up at her classmates. "Patty-chan? Hiyorin?"

The blonde American gave her a thumbs up. "It's fine! You two be happy!"

Hiyorin had rushed up to them. "I'm so happy for you! An actual gay couple, right before my eyes! I never thought I'd see this happen! You two are so great for each other!" The young mangaka gushed over the new couple, and Patty had to pull her away."

Yutaka looked around. "Anyone else?"

Tsukasa raised her hand. "Um, I know I don't know you very well, but I'm happy for you!" Her sister nodded her agreement.

Miyuki smiled warmly. "Well, I'm sure Minami-chan and Yutaka-san will be very happy for each other."

Shiki just waved a hand. "Eh, two more lesbians in the world. But if you need any advice on any… technical issues, let me know. It'll be nice to have a couple of apprentices," she said offhandedly. Yutaka looked at her confusedly, and Minami blushed. But they left it alone.

Ayano and Misao had been talking back and forth, but they looked up when Kagami poked Kusakabe in the side. "What? Oh, yeah! Girl power, and all that!" Ayano just smiled a little. "Well, I'm not entirely sure what I think about the idea, but I promise I won't let my opinions interfere in your happiness."

Ryuuko interpreted that as _I don't approve of lesbianism, but I approve of love. Go, you. _He gave Ayano a small smile and mouthed, "Thank You." Ayano smiled back and nodded.

Ryuuko turned his attention back to the game, and was about to ask Minami to turn the bottle again, but she gave him a look. "Ryuuko? Do you have something to say?"

He stopped for a second, and realized he hadn't actually made a comment. Then a thought sprang into his head. "I believe Kenji can some it up for the both of us," he said, glancing over at his camouflaged friend. Kenji raised an eyebrow, then his eyes widened, and he smiled. The blonde adult turned his head towards the new couple, and gave them two thumbs up. "Lesbians are neato!" he exclaimed.

Ryuuko face vaulted into the table, then glanced back up to them. "Not quite the way I would have said it, but yeah. Go you." He grinned at them.

The two smiled, and Minami spun the bottle. It was Ayano's turn, so they played on.

Author's note: Don't worry, truth or dare isn't over, I have a lot more planned. That's why it's called Part 1!


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: OK, continuing the epic game of Truth or Dare!

…or dare. One of the dares in here came from another author's story, because I thought it was awesomely moe.

Chapter 7: Slumber Party (Part 2)

"Karaoke!" Ayano said excitedly. Minami nodded, and suggested a song by Mai Nakahara. Ayano bounced out of her seat and took up a microphone, scanning through the selection excitedly, till she found her song. As the harmonica intro sounded, she almost hopped in place.

Ryuuko leaned over to Konata. "I think she's just happy to have something else to focus on," he whispered. "I got the impression that the last 'event'," he marked the word with air quotes, "Didn't sit entirely well with her. But I don't think she'll let her unease become a problem for those two. At least I hope not."

Konata nodded. "It makes sense. Everything I know about Minegeshi-san points to her being a very ladylike individual, with very traditional views. I'm not surprises she has some hesitations about it. But I'm happy for them. It's about time. Now hush, she's almost done," she added, elbowing him in the side.

He gave her a look, then glanced up in time to see Ayano finishing her song, clapping along with the outro. Ayano gave a slight bow, and took her seat again. She grasped the bottle and spun. It pointed to Ryuuko.

He mulled it over. "Alright, alright. I guess truth would be the safest bet."

Ayano smiled at him. Some part of him shivered, but he wasn't sure why. "OK, Ryuosen-san. Um… Oh! Who do you have a crush on?"

Ryuuko blinked, then narrowed his eyes. "That's a loaded question."

She just kept smiling. "Well, you know the rules." It seemed she was enjoying this.

Ryuuko looked around the table, and, just as he expected, everyone was staring at him. Shiki was grinning evilly. _She knew about this, _he thought to himself. He sighed heavily. _And I might as well get it over with._ "OK, do you want just one girl? Or all of them?"

The orange haired girl tilted her head. "All of them? You have more than one?"

He laughed a little at that. "Of course. We are sitting at the same table, right?" He raised an eyebrow with his question. Then he started ticking names off, counting on his fingers. "OK, this isn't in any particular order, but, Patty-chan, Misao, Izumiya-chan, Hiyorin, Yasaka-chan, Ayano-san, although she is taken, and Anna Tsuchiya, but that's a fanboy thing," he added casually. He glanced around the table to see a few of the girls he'd named blush, while Konata and Patricia grinned at him. Konata seemed almost smug.

Ayano blinked. "Well, I didn't see that coming… I guess the truth is the truth, huh?"

Ryuuko shrugged. "Hey, you asked. OK, my turn," he grinned, rubbing his hands together, then spun the bottle. It was Kenji's turn.

Kenji looked up at him. "Hah, you don't have the guts to make this hard. Double-dare! He announced, and spun the bottle again. It pointed at Hiyori. Ryuuko grinned evilly.

"Hey, Hiyorin, that's a nice dress you're wearing. I have an idea…" he said slowly. "You and Kenji have to go into one of the empty rooms, and trade clothes."

Hiyorin sputtered, and started to blush. "Me? Wear boy's clothes? Wh-wh-why?"

Kenji glared at him. "You're going to make me wear a dress? I'm so getting you for this. This is-this is just cruel."

Ryuuko smiled in a very Ayano-ish manner, even closing his eyes the same way. "Doesn't matter. You have to do it. Don't worry, Kenji" he added. "I'm sure you're thin enough that it'll fit no problem."

Kenji just stood up and stalked out of the room, Hiyori following sheepishly. While they were gone, Konata sighed heavily. "This mean's Hiyorin's in the lead with 10, now. This sucks, I want to win."

Ryuuko shrugged. "Then you should pick a challenge next time."

Konata glanced up at him. "I guess. It depends on who's doing the dare, though. Anyway, Ryuuko," she said, staring at him.

"Yeah?"

"How can you have a crush on more than one girl? I thought you'd already figured out who you wanted to go out with," she stated.

"Kind of, but I want to dig a little deeper first. Want to make sure I keep my head up, in case something goes wrong. Hell, you've played enough of those games that that should be pretty obvious," he told her.

"Yeah, but I never see it in real life. And I usually just choose one person at a time and go straight for it," she explained.

He nodded. "I can see that. You're much more direct than I am." They chatted a little more, then Kenji and Hiyorin stepped back out. Ryuuko was somewhere between laughing himself out of his chair, and blushing till he broke.

Hiyori, as it turned out, looked very good in camo. She almost filed out the smaller girl in baggy clothes stereotype perfectly. Kenji, on the other hand…

Well, the dress fit him, but that's about all the good that could be said for it. It was a sleeveless day dress, very frilly, in light shades of pink. He'd had to go barefoot, however, because Hiyori's shoes didn't fit. He was very unhappy. The rest of the table, however, erupted in laughter, and compliments on Hiyori's attire.

Kenji just plopped down in his chair again, grasped the bottle, and spun. It pointed at Minami. The green haired girl blinked, not expecting to be chosen again. "Um, truth," she said quietly.

Kenji sighed, and thought a bit. "OK, here's one. Have you ever stolen money from your parents?"

"No," she said simply. "I've never needed to."

Ryuuko just glanced at the other guy. "Dude, that was… you could do so much better."

Kenji glared at him. "I'm saving up."

Minami glanced between the two, and spun the bottle again. It pointed to Tsukasa. "Um…" she said nervously. "I didn't expect to get pointed to, um, uh… dare!" she finished boldly. Her older sister gave her a look.

"Really?" Kagami asked. "Didn't expect that."

Minami thought about it. "Alright. I guess… you have to watch the horror movie that Konata-sempai and the others were watching."

"What? Oh no!" Tsukasa exclaimed. Konata laughed.

"That's perfect! But you don't get the points until you do it, although you can spin the bottle," she told the ribboned girl, who was still shaking in her chair. "That work?" she asked in general. Again, most people nodded. Some didn't bother.

Tsukasa picked up the bottle, dropped it on the table, and stammered an apology. Then she gave it a weak spin. It pointed at Konata. "Challenge! She said excitedly.

Tsukasa thought it over, distracted by the responsibility of choosing a challenge for her friend. "Um, can we have someone else do something that's already been done?"

Shiki nodded. "Yup, but the same person can't do the same thing twice. If it's someone new, that's fine."

Konata glanced at Tsukasa. "What are you thinking?"

Tsukasa smiled. "OK, Kona-chan, do you have a crush on anyone in this room?"

Konata's head smacked hard against the table. "Curses!" she exclaimed, then started to rub her head. "Foiled within my own devious plot!" she gestured extravagantly to increase the dramatic effect.

Ryuuko noticed that, while she was posturing, she looked rather nervous. _What could she be nervous about? It's not like we're going to judge her after her cousin-_ a thought clicked into place like the last gear in a clockwork machine, and Ryuuko grimaced. Of course she didn't want to say it. There would be only one person in the room she'd have a crush on, if she was straight, and admitting it, after knowing that the guy liked her back, would be as good as asking him out. Ryuuko wondered if she was even ready for a relationship.

Of course, if she did swing that way, Ryuuko understood how nervous it would make her to admit that, too. Even after openly accepting Minami and Yutaka, most of the girls seemed a little uncomfortable. To have another girl confess to them now might be too much.

Then there was always the possibility that she didn't have a crush on anyone, and she was trying to spare the young boys feelings in front of their friends. Either way, she was in a pickle. So Ryuuko acted. "You know, Izumiya-chan, you do have a cheat code," he explained.

Konata looked up at him. "Really? How so?"

"You can forfeit your turn. Then Shiki spins the bottle, and that person spins for their turn. You won't get any points, of course, but whatever secrets you have will stay that way."

Tsukasa pouted, while Konata grinned at her fellow gamer. "Good job!" she told him, and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I forfeit my turn."

"Oh, pooh," Tsukasa groaned, and slumped into the table.

Shiki spun the bottle again. It pointed to Miyuki, who spun it in turn. Then it pointed at Kou. "Dare!" the blonde girl said quickly. "Gimme what you got!"

Miyuki looked a little taken aback by Kou's level of enthusiasm, but merely said, "Alright. Um… I dare you to do a handstand."

The table fell silent, and Ryuuko took a moment to figure out why. "What's the big deal, it's just a-" then he caught on. "Oh. Well then." Miyuki blushed a bit. It seems she hadn't thought her dare through.

Kou was wearing a skirt. Although, she didn't seem to mind. "Alright, then," she said simply, as she walked to the center of the room, and faced the group. She leaned forward, balancing herself with her head and hands, and tilted herself upwards. She balanced herself upright, and her skirt fell away-

-to reveal a pair of bloomers for phys ed. "Booyah!" she exclaimed, righting herself. She took her seat and smiled smugly. "I've told you that I've played before. You always come prepared." Without another word, she took the bottle, and spun it again. It pointed to Misao.

"Truth," she said offhandedly. "I'm still slightly dizzy from the last thing."

Kou grinned. "Perfect. OK, Kusakabe-sempai, you should know this one." She stole a glance at Ayano, who raised a curious eyebrow. "Who is Ayano-sempai going out with?"

Ayano blushed furiously, and Misao looked from her friend to Kou, back and forth, not sure whether or not to answer. Ayano just nodded at her. Kusakabe sighed. "My older brother," she stated simply.

There was a great deal of commotion at this. Almost all the girls in the group had wanted to know who Ayano's beau was, but no one had expected this. Kenji just waved his hands around, to get their attention. "Alright, alright. We still have half an hour more game to play, and I need my revenge. So you girls can gossip later, it's not like we won't have the time."

Ryuuko had to wonder if there wasn't a hive mind factor at work here, when all the girls muttered in agreement. Misao took the bottle and spun it quickly. It traveled a ways around the table before it stopped on Konata. "Dare!" she exclaimed.

Misao grinned. "Alright, Chibiko, I hear you're a pretty fast runner. And since we're barely a month into the school year, there's still a little time… I dare you to try out for the track club on Monday!"

Konata blinked silently at that. "Um… what?"

Misao grinned wider. "You heard me."

Konata let her head slam into the table again. "There goes more of my prime-time anime…" she groaned weekly. She looked absolutely defeated, and barely had the strength to spin the bottle again. It pointed at Hiyori. "Um… dare," she said quietly. "I really don't feel like any truths right now."

Konata nodded, and smirked maliciously. "Alright, here's another dare that you can't do right off the bat. I dare you to let everyone in this group you've used as references for your doujin stories read the ones you drew about them."

Hiyorin sputtered. "Ko-ko-Konata-sempai! That's too cruel!"

Konata shrugged. "Oh, come on. I've read almost all of your work, and the only ones you should be embarrassed about, the real life person has already read. You've got some good work."

Hiyorin looked around, and said quietly, "I'll pass. I'm not ready to do that just yet."

Konata sulked a little, but Ryuuko gave her an encouraging smile. He saw Minami and Yutaka consoling their friend, and Patty gave her a thumbs-up. Shiki spun the bottle again. It pointed to Kenji. "Yes! Finally, my chance at revenge! Let's try this!" he exclaimed, spinning the bottle fiercely. It took some time before it stopped on Patty-chan. "No!" he wailed in defeat. Ryuuko grinned smugly at him.

"Please try your call again later," he said in a flat drone.

Patty raised an eyebrow at her neighbor. "Double dare!" she exclaimed. Ryuuko gave her a weird look.

Kenji grinned, and Patricia spun the bottle again. It pointed at Ryuuko. "Oh, crap."

"Alright!" Kenji exclaimed, then settled in his chair, thinking hard. "OK, what can I… hmm." Then his face lit up in a maniacal grin. "I dare you two to switch uniforms on Monday-"

Shiki interrupted with a buzzer noise. "Sorry, but you can't have someone do a dare that would break a rule for school, or the law. You remember that."

"Nice try, bro," Kou sighed, glancing at Ryuuko. He didn't want to think what cross-dressing would do to him.

Kenji muttered something ruefully under his breath, and thought again. "OK, I dare you two to pick the person at the table you like the most, crush or no, and give them a kiss!"

Patricia shrugged, but blushed slightly.

Ryuuko nearly fell out of his chair. "What? You, you, you….."

"I, I, I…. dare you to kiss the person at this table you like the most!" Kenji finished for him. "And I win!" he added, giving a small fist-pump.

Ryuuko shrugged, and felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned in time for Patricia to plant a kiss on his lips, and linger there for a moment. He felt himself start to overheat, and get dizzy. She was a great kisser.

After they parted, Ryuuko wobbled a bit. "Whoa… that was… OK, that was a _good_ kiss." The heat in his face hadn't faded. He took a moment to settle himself, and felt all eyes on him. "Kenji? I freakin' hate you, but…" he added, slowly raising his hand in the air, "I have to pass. You said person, and I like more than one, so I can't follow those rules. Guess I'm not very good at this game," he finished, and leaned back in his chair. He still had a hint of a smile left on his face."

"Dude, that's not OK. You can't just pass when I'm about to get my revenge!" Kenji exclaimed, glaring at the black-haired teen.

"Actually, yeah I can. Cause I kind of have to," he said simply. He felt a nudge from his right, and glanced over to Patricia.

"So I'm not the girl you like most?" she asked quietly. She looked crestfallen.

Ryuuko's train of thought almost derailed right away, but he steadied himself, and smiled at her. "Well, think about this- do you see me kissing anyone else?"

"I don't see you kissing me," she told him, but smiled anyway.

A buzzer at the end of the table made them all jump. "Time's up" Shiki told them.

The tension in the air had dissipated quickly, so much so that most people weren't even aware of it until it left them. Ryuuko slumped back into a recliner in the living room, and watched his friends sort of fall down around him. Some laid out on the floor, others made themselves comfortable in various chairs and couches, and Misao and Kenji (after having changed) took to raiding the leftovers from dinner. Tsukasa, Miyuki, and Kagami had gone into a back room to watch the horror movie, so Tsukasa could complete her dare. Konata lay sprawled out on the carpet,moaning about how she hadn't won a single point. Shiki was trying to figure out the best way to break the tie between Hiyori and Patricia, and everyone else seemed focused on the new couple.

Yutaka and Minami weren't sure how to handle the attention. Mainly, it was Hiyori and Patty that were the most excited about it, the rest seemed to just accept it, or hold their piece to themselves.

"Can I write a doujin about you now?" Hiyori asked. "I've got a dozen ideas!"

"What do you mean, now?" Ryuuko asked offhandedly, having nested himself in his chair, and coming very close to falling asleep.

He could practically hear Hiyori blush. "Tha-th-that was different!" the mangaka insisted.

Patricia bounced in her seat. "This is so cool! I knew you guys would get together, but I never thought I'd see it!"

Yutaka kind of stammered. "I-I'm not sure exactly what to do, now. I don't really feel any different, except maybe happier, but… I've never gone out with anyone before, so I don't know how good of a girlfriend I'd be…"

Minami just nodded encouragingly. "Don't worry, Yutaka. I've never done this before, either. We'll just take it slow, I'm not going anywhere," she said quietly. Yutaka smiled, and nodded back.

"…take it slow… I'm not going anywhere…" Ryuuko muttered to himself. His eyes flickered open as an idea sprung to mind, and he saw a few girls looking at him. "Oh, I've so got to write a song about this," he said excitedly, and jumped up to run off.

"Before you go anywhere," Shiki stopped him, "remember how late it is. I think we should start getting ready for bed." She glanced at him, and gave his a very small, very wry smile. Ryuuko twitched.

"I told you I'm not-"

"Oh, yes you are. That was the deal," she said simply.

"What deal?" Ayano asked from her spot on the sofa. Kou, sitting next to her, had fallen asleep, but stirred at the disturbance. Shiki balked, having let a vital detail slip.

Ryuuko covered for her. "The uncle who owns this house isn't a big fan of mine, but absolutely dotes on Shiki. So I made a deal with her that if she could talk him in to letting us use the house for this weekend, I'd wear the pj's she got me for Christmas last year," he explained, knowing it was a total lie. Shiki sighed in relief, and Ryuuko stalked upstairs, not looking forward to coming back down.

A little after, Kenji and Misao, along with Tsukasa and the other girls, rejoined the group in the living room. Kenji slumped back into Ryuuko's chair. "So, girls, what do you think of tonight's game?"

Konata bobbed her head. "It was fun, even if I didn't get any points," she said.

Tsukasa smiled. "Well, you could have done my dare…"

"No thanks," Konata stated bluntly, sitting up. "Speaking of dares," she added, glancing over at Patricia. "That was as good as a confession, how do you feel?"

The blonde girl looked thoughtful. "I'm not sure. I loved kissing him, and I'm glad he didn't turn around and kiss somebody else, but I kind of wish it could have been that easy. I was happy to hear that I was one of the girls he liked!" she added happily. Konata nodded in agreement.

"I know! We have a lot of strong rivals now, though!" she stated, looking keenly at the other girls.

Ayano waved off Konata's stare. "Oh, you don't need to worry about me. I do like him, but not that way. Besides, I'm happy in my relationship as it is."

Kagami just shrugged as he sat down. "It's at least good to know that I've caught a boy's eye, even if he is very nearly a male version of Konata. At least he cares about his studies."

Kusakabe rubbed her chin. "I don't know… I think he's OK, but not my type, really. Good thing he has a bunch of other girls to worry about."

Hiyori just glanced around meekly, while the other girls looked for a response from her, and saw that Kou had woken up. "Sempai, what do you think about Ryuuko-san?"

"I think I'm going to have to make him pull more club hours if I want to keep him to myself," she said mischievously.

Hiyori nodded. "That might work for both of us," she agreed.

Ryuuko, who had camped himself around the corner at the top of the stairs, let out a long sigh. "Great, now they're going to make things more difficult for me. I should have just kissed _her_ and have had done with it," he muttered, walking off to the room he'd set up camp in earlier. He pulled out a guitar, one of the cheaper models he owned to travel around with, and started plucking at the chords. "I'm not going anywhere…" he muttered again, and starting playing a familiar tune. Soon, the chords found their way into another of his favorite songs, and as he heard the riffs pour out quietly through the amp, he sang with it:

"_Running away is not something I'm willing to do_

_I'll stay right here, and you can't make me move an inch_

_Here with you now, there's no place else that I'd rather be_

_Say what you will, but I'm not going anywhere_

_I will fight, this love is too good just to turn my back on_

_I'll never turn away, and I will hold my ground till the day is done_

_God knows that I will never leave you, and I'll keep on fighting_

_Let them try what they will I'm not moving, and when all is done_

_ We'll be together, you wait and see_

_God knows that we will be together, I will stay forever_

_I will stay put no matter what comes my way you wait and see,_

_ I'll never give up fighting_

_Good evening and god bless_

_Playing up here, there's nothing more important to me_

_I've got to speak my mind or no one will listen_

_Message in hand, you are my sword and I am your shield_

_Never give in, or everything we love is lost_

_Don't stand down, we've got the strength to stand and keep on fighting_

_Don't ever run away, cause while you're by my side I can never die_

_God knows that I will keep on fighting, I will keep on loving _

_nothing will stop me, not now, not ever_

_So just hold your ground, we'll survive as long as we are one_

_God knows that I will always love you, I've never been clearer_

_They can't make me move no matter what they try_

_ So let them come, and I will not stop fighting_

_Good evening and god bless_

_To watch you standing there, against the pale blue moon it fills my heart with strength_

_ And I know that you love me_

_Never give up the fight, we'll keep playing all night if that is what it takes_

_ You know I have no regrets_

_Keep fighting, Keep singing_

_I will never leave you, I will not stop fighting _

_They may be the same words but their always true and now you know_

_ The steps that I will take just to win_

_God knows that I would follow you if that is what you wanted_

_I know you've heard all of this before but that is why you're here_

_ And why you're never leaving_

_I love you and god bless"_

Satisfied with at least a rough version of what he wanted the song to be, a tribute to another Haruhi tune, he stowed away his instruments, and reluctantly pulled out his sleep-wear.

Downstairs, a dead hush had fallen over the rest of the group, as they gathered closer to the stairs to listen to Ryuuko's song. When he stopped playing, it took a few moments to get everyone back to their chairs, as most wanted to hear him play again.

"Damn," Kenji noted. "Guess he actually did practice all this time. Wish he'd play something more original, though."

Konata looked slightly indignant. "What do you mean? He's an awesome tribute artist, he-" but she stopped, as Ryuuko had come back downstairs. The group followed her gaze, and most jaws dropped. "He…"

"He's wearing a one-piece cat sleeper," Kenji noted.

Author's Note: I love tribute songs. Also, I love cat sleepers.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: Sorry about the wait. Life's kinda sucked lately.

Chapter 8: Morning After, Part 1: The things we do…

"You're totally wearing a cat sleeper. Why in god's name are you wearing a cat sleeper?" Kenji groaned, giving his younger friend a look.

Ryuuko wore an expression that could only be read as 'This was not my idea,' and pointed an obviously accusatory finger at Shiki. It said 'She did it.' "Honestly? I keep it cause it was a present. And I don't throw those away-"

"And the fact that you sleep in it on cold nights has nothing to do with it?" Shiki cut him off.

A low noise akin to a growl mixed with a groan emanated from the guitarist's throat. "This coming from the girl who wears other girls on cold nights? Ok, scratch that, bad example," he added, seeing some of the girls blush. "Ah, screw it," he groaned, then stretched languidly, and plopped down in an empty armchair, grinning slightly. "I can't pretend to be mad about it, I love this thing." He looked up to see three otaku girls standing above him, with mixed expressions. "Yyyeeeeessss?" He asked coyly.

Konata looked somewhere between exasperation and something else. "I have to say that I like the outfit, but I just don't think these things look good on guys. And it doesn't fit the Ryuuko image, so I can't approve!"

"Oh, and the Morrigan costume you have _so _ fits you…" Ryuuko drawled. He felt half the room do a double take.

"Wh-wha-what kind of costume is that?" Kagami spluttered. Ryuuko raised an eyebrow at her, and saw her blush furiously.

_Probably one you'd love to see her in,_ he thought. "Ah, it's nothing. Just something she showed me from her cosplay collection that she was thinking of using at her café."

Konata stood proudly. "It's not a Morrigan costume, it's Lilith! And I fit that profile perfectly!"

"Yeah, you're both emotionally cruel, vicious fighters where it counts, and-" Ryuuko cut himself off before his last point, figuring that Konata would most likely be sensitive about her chest size. Besides, that wasn't the kind of thing a guy pointed out anyway.

Konata raised an eyebrow at him. "And? And what, Ryuukyon?"

"Think fast, kitty man," Kenji half laughed behind a can of soda.

"And you both have scary power in your obsessions. Anyway, it's not like we're the only one with costumes, right, Tomo-chan?" The black haired boy asked, grinning evilly at Hiyori.

"H-Ha-how did you know?" She stammered, taking a step back.

"Kou mentioned it," he added, waving casually over to their club president.

"Sempai!" Hiyori yelled, swinging around to glare at the blonde girl, who had taken to falling asleep again.

Shiki blinked, and looked around to a few other girls. Most everyone looked exhausted. "Alright, munchkins. Time for bed."

_The next morning…_

Ryuuko knew it was evil. He knew it was dastardly. He knew they would hate him until the end of time.

He also knew he HAD to do it.

The sleeping arrangements for the night before couldn't have been more predictable. With the large bedroom sizes, and extra rooms with space for sleeping bags, the group split off pretty evenly. Konata, Kagami, Tsukasa and Miyuki had all taken adownstairs guest room with plenty of floor space. Ayano, Kusakabe, and Yui had taken a room upstairs with a bed for each. All the first year girls had grouped together, Kenji and Kou had taken their own room, and Shiki and Ryuuko had taken rooms unto themselves, set up before anyone else had arrived.

Which meant that Ryuuko didn't risk waking anyone up with his devious plan. He hauled a few boxes downstairs that he had moved in the day before they arrived, hiding his evil plans even from Shiki, by calling a cab. Unpacking the boxes, he made sure everything was in order, and in perfect working condition. He ran upstairs and downstairs, running wire and equipment to all of the doors, and the living room. With some finishing touches, and some pre-tested adjustments, it was all set.

So he plugged his guitar into the feeder box that led to a speaker in front of select bedroom doors, and the surround system downstairs. He tuned his instrument, cleared his throat, and said quietly to himself, "I'm going to burn, but it's going to be a good kind of burn." Then he switched his mike on, took a deep, quiet breath, and dived into the opening riff for the song:

"_Hey_

_Listen to the beat, listen to the beat_

_If we think it's good we're singing so loud_

_At. First. This song. Was going to be called Girls Go Maniac_

_But with this melody, and the new lyrics_

_We decided it'd be better this way_

_So we took a chance, chance_

_Let it rode, and jump, jump_

_Now we're having fun, fun_

_So give us a shout, shout_

_We're having a blast, and if we mess up, we'll rehearse it one more time_

_HA!"_

He heard over his guitar the sound of very disturbed people getting out of bed, and grinned at his evil plan.

"_Let us play you our songs with all our heart_

_Throwing out all of these chords with so much love_

_We get so excited so we just turn it up_

_We sing about anything and everything we can so listen up!_

_When it's all about the things you love_

_You can sing anything that you want_

_When you've got nothing left to lose_

_You just sing with everything you have and don't let anybody stop you_

_It's your song sing it the way you want and_

_Play it loud and hard, play it loud and hard_

_It doesn't matter the season we're singing out loud_

_Come on. Play it. There's nothing left to lose when you're on stage_

_With all the drumming, the guitar picking_

_We're having a blast and now, so are you_

_Just give it one more chance, chance_

_Our style play, play_

_Come on now and dance, dance_

_Let me see you shake, shake_

_Give it all you've got, cause we've still got a ways to go, come with us!_

_HA!"_

By now, most everyone was up, and gathered around the living room, some glaring at him, some still sleepy-confused as to what was going on, and one or two people-Shiki and Kusakabe-were dancing.

"_First let's hear that awesome keyboard play_

_Then we'll give it a little guitar!_

_Let's throw in a little piece of bass_

_Then we throw in a little drums and let her rock out loud!_

_When we throw the whole thing in together_

_It's like there's a god directing us_

_He's giving us the pieces we need_

_To throw the whole puzzle together and play it all as one_

_Cause there's nothing better to do!"_

He filled in the spaces where the keyboard and drums would fall with some practiced chords, making his guitar whine when the keyboard played, pulling mutes and dry notes where the drums should be.

"_Playing on the street, playing on the stage_

_It doesn't matter where as long as we're live_

_We've, got, the time, to make something out of this ragtag band_

_Listen to us play, dance to all our songs_

_We love to hear the feedback from fans_

_We will let you choose, choose_

_Playing something new, new_

_Do it all for you, you_

_Nothing left to lose, lose_

_Playing all night long_

_Cause we know we're the ones you came here to see_

_If you've come here just to relax, I can say that's not going to happen._

_But if you've come here to have fun, that's ok, it's alright._

_We play our songs just to rock out loud, sitting back just isn't an option_

_We won't give you time to relax_

_ So jump up_

_ Let's have some fun_

_ It's fine with us_

_ Just listen up!_

_Hey, GO!"_

By now the group, half of which had been attempting to make him stop, the other half just going with it, had realized that he wasn't going to let them cut him off. After a few chords, most everybody had given up, and a lot of them seemed pretty into it.

"_Listen to the beat, listen to the beat_

_If we think it's good we're singing so loud_

_At. First. This song. Was going to be called Girls Go Maniac_

_But with that melody, and all these lyrics_

_We decided it'd be better this way_

_So we took a chance, chance_

_Let it rode, and jump, jump_

_Now we're having fun, fun_

_So give us a shout, shout_

_Yeah!_

_So we took a chance, chance_

_Let it rode, and jump, jump_

_Now we're having fun, fun_

_So give us a shout, shout_

_We're having a blast, and if we mess up, we'll rehearse it one more time_

_We'll play our music for you, we'll play our music live_

_We'll tell our high school stories, so. Make. Sure. You listen_

_We'll play our music for you, we'll play our music live_

_We'll tell our high school stories, so. Make. Sure. You listen_

_We'll play our music for you, we'll play our music live_

_We'll tell our high school stories, so. Make. Sure. You listen_

_We'll play our music for you, we'll play our music live_

_We'll tell our high school stories, so. Make. Sure. You listen!"_

He wrapped up the last few bars, collapsing into the couch he had positioned himself in front of. "Good morning!"

Kenji growled at him. "Why did you put a speaker in front of our door?"

Ryuuko, still in his cat sleeper from the night before, just grinned at him. "Good morning, nya." He took a look at his audience, and could tell instantly who the morning people weren't. "They're out there, all right. Those people that, when you adjust their sleep cycle for them, don't get any."

Kagami just plopped down on the couch next to him, and drove her fist into the top of his head. "Having a million decibels screaming through the house at seven-"

"-nine-" Ryuuko corrected.

"-THIS EARLY in the morning doesn't help, either. But that's not why I'm so tired," she added, yawning again."

Ryuuko took a closer look at the girls. All of them looked like they hadn't gotten any sleep at all. "Am I the only one who slept normally?"

Shiki raised her hand. "I'm fine!" Many people turned to glare at her. "Um…"

The black-haired teen glanced at a few girls. "Okay, who wants to go first?"

_The night before… _Kagami

Kagami, Konata, Tsukasa, and Miyuki were all getting settled into their room, a guest room that had extra mats laid out for them, as well as a couch, which Konata had called as soon as they stepped into the room. They chattered a little as they set up, but when they'd finally settled, Tsukasa chose that moment to throw one out of left field. "So, sis, what do you think of Ryuuko?"

"What? I already told you. I think he's ok, but I'm not as big a fan of otaku boys," she said casually.

Konata poked her from her spot on the couch. Kagami had unconsciously chosen the spot directly below her. "What about otaku girls?"

"Don't get me started on you psychos. You people have crazy hobby energy. But I do like his songs. I'd like to hear something he's done from scratch," Kagami mused.

"That's not likely to happen," the blue-haired midget noted.

"Oh, why's that?" Miyuki asked gently.

"People like Ryuuko who devote a lot of their time into doing tribute works for other artists are usually very self-concious about doing anything original. They play off of other people to get a feel for their sound, and to get used to what kind of lyrics they use, and how well they play certain styles, well before they establish their own work. It wouldn't surprise me if he had some of his own stuff, but most likely it will be awhile before anyone of us hears it," Konata explained.

Tsukasa nodded. "I guess that makes sense. Tamura-chan is very secretive about her works, even the tribute ones. It makes sense that those two are shy about their original pieces. It's like a part of them, right?"

Kagami nodded approval. "Well, for someone who spends most of her life in other people's worlds, you sure do have a good head for what it's like to be yourself."

Konata gave her a look. "Hey, just because I spend my time on manga, anime, and games, doesn't mean I don't make things, too!"

"Oh, really?" Kagami grinned. "Like what? DO you write fanfictions or something?"

"No, just costumes. Most of the outfits I wear to work or to conventions I've made myself," she said casually.

The other girls looked surprised at this. "Really, Kona-chan? You make your own clothes? That's amazing!"

"Yeah, in fact, the café I work at has already started paying me for making outfits for the other girls. Dad and I are talking about getting me into at arts college when I graduate, he says the one he went to has a great design department."

Miyuki nodded. "I believe that's a local university, isn't it?"

"Mm-hm. He says he'd rather have me at home while I'm attending my first year of college. Changing new schools hasn't exactly been easy for me. And speaking of local schools, Kagamin, I hear you're putting in for a pre-law school very close to your house, is that right?" she gave the tsundere a mischievous grin.

Kagami rounded on her twin. "Tsukasa, you blabbermouth! Why do you always tell her these things?"

"I-I'm sorry, sis. But since I'm trying to get into the same art shool as Kona-chan, I thought it would be exciting for us to all hang out during college, as well," the younger sibling glanced over to Miyuki, who looked crestfallen. "Takara-chan, what's wrong?"

"I'm going to be moving into the city after high school, for pre-med. I won't be able to see you guys anymore…" she sobbed.

The other girls instantly leapt to her side, with encouragements of 'We'll call you every week!' and 'There's always weekends and vacations!'

Miyuki smiled a little, and wiped her eyes. "Thank you, everyone. Well, we still have most of the year to go, and the culture and sports festivals, so there's still time to have fun."

Kagami gave Konata a sly look. "As long as we still get time to study for our entrance exams."

Konata just waved it off. "It'll be fine, fine, I tell you! Anyway, I'm more concerned about what's going to happen over the next few weeks."

"Why's that?" Tsukasa asked.

"Because of that boy! Patty-chan's already kissed him, Kou and Hiyorin have their eyes on him, I'm just glad I don't have to compete with Miyuki, I'd be doomed!" she exclaimed, flopping back into the armrest of the couch.

Kagami raised an eyebrow. "I still don't see why you're so crazy over him."

Konata shot back up. "Isn't it obvious? He's probably the only otaku in the entire town who isn't some basement-dwelling nerd! Half the boys at our school that are otaku are a total mess, and the other half are perverts and jerks! Of course he has to be a transfer student, who knows that he's going to do after high school."

Tsukasa mulled that over. "I guess he might go back to the dojo, and take after his father, so that he can keep it in the family."

"He could just start playing his own music and jump into a band, cruising around Japan," Kagami threw in.

"He seems to have a penchant for these things. But he's also very good at his studies. I guess his parents push him hard, so that they can be sure he can manage on his own. He may go into an academic field in a more prestigious college," Miyuki mused.

Konata sighed and fell back. "And all the really good academics colleges are in other districts. I may never see him again after this year!"

Tsukasa and Miyuki both opened their mouths to console her, but there was a knock at the door. Yutaka poked her head in. "Um, Takara-sempai? Tsukasa-sempai? Could I talk to you for a moment? There's something Minami-chan and I need to discuss with you…"

"Oi, Yu-chan!" Konata exclaimed. "You know you can always talk to me about stuff!"

"Um, no, that's ok! It's, um… it's about college!" Yu-chan stammered.

Konata made a face. "Blech! No, thanks. You girls go have fun with that…"

After Miyuki and Tsukasa had left the room, Konata pulled out her DS, and started poking at the screen. Then she felt a tug on her sleeve. "Hm, Kagami? What's up?"

"Um, nothing, I was just… I was wondering if Ryuuko was the only boy you were interested in…"

Konata looked puzzled for a moment, then grinned. "Oh, why's that? Do you like him, too?"

Kagami turned red. "No, no. it's nothing like that! I… I, aw, hell, I don't know why I asked-"

"Ooh, ooh, I know, I know!" Ryuuko volunteered, bouncing up and down in his seat, waving his hand like a grade school kid.

"Shut up! How could you possibly know? I'm not even done with my story yet!" Kagami fumed.

"I have my ways," Ryuuko grinned evilly.

"Ugh, you people…."

Konata gave the purple-haired tsundere a closer look, considering her carefully. "Kagami, if you really do like Ryuuko, I can step aside for you," she offered.

Kagami blinked. This was exceptionally charitable, especially from Konata. "But I thought you liked him a whole lot," she said quietly.

"I do. But he's more like a rare drop than anything. There aren't a great deal of guys like him out there, and we have a lot in common, so meeting someone like him is really exciting. But you put much more consideration into who you like and who you hang out with, so if you like him too, I know they're for better reasons than mine. Besides, you're more important than some boy," Konata explained.

"Konata…" Kagami said softly. There were slight tears in her eyes.

"But if that's not the case, then I'll totally take him!" Konata exclaimed, gesturing happily.

Something clicked in Kagami's head. Something different. This girl was willing to step aside for her, let her have something she wanted, just because they were friends. But it wasn't what she wanted. What she wanted was-

"You!" she exclaimed, grabbing Konata's wrists and pinning her to the couch.

"Kagami?"

"You stupid, ignorant, blissfully unaware little otaku twerp! It's not Ryuuko I want, it's you! Don't you get it! I don't want you to step aside, I want you to forget him entirely! Why can't you look at me the way you look at him? Why can't you talk about me like you do him? Why have I been on the back burner this whole time?" she cried, shaking her head wildly.

"K-kagamin…" Konata said slowly. "I-" but she was cut off, as Kagamin dove into her, kissing her deeply. Konata's head started to spin, and she ran short of breath almost instantly. When Kagami finally let go, she gasped for lungful of air after another. Then she got another wild look on her face, and tossed Kagami back onto the mat.

"Konata-" Kagami cried, fearing Konata had thrown her away in disgust. At least, until Konata pinned her down.

"Don't you think I've tried?" Konata yelled. It was her turn to cry.

"Wha-"

"No, it's my turn to talk! You keep looking at me weirdly, like you don't know what to do with me! I try and spend all of my time with you, copying homework, going to your shrine festivals, going over to your house, even dragging you to Comiket! Why do you think you were the only one I invited the first year? You've never been on the back burner, never! You're always at the front, always roasting hot in my mind! You think it's easy to give up on you and go after someone else? He's not the one I like, but I figured I'd never get you to pay attention otherwise!" Konata's tears were staining Kagami's shirt, and before the twin-tailed girl could get a word out, Konata drove home her own kiss.

They stayed like that for awhile, until eventually Konata fell over beside Kagami, her strength taking leave of her. "Konata… I had no idea you felt the same way…"

"That's because you're a stubborn tsundere," Konata explained.

"Hey!" Kagami yelled, and looked ready to say something else, but Konata cut her off.

"And I'm the oblivious otaku who fell in love with you," she finished.

Kagami blushed. "…This wasn't easy, you know."

"I know."

"And it's not like everyone at school gets to know.

"I know."

"But we're going to have to tell the others. Especially Ryuuko.

"I know."

"What will my parents think?"

"I kn-"

"No you don't!" Kagami exclaimed, exasperated. "God, what am I going to do with you?"

"Konata rolled over on top of her. "That, I do know," she said softly, and settled in for another kiss.

As the story progressed, the other girls started giving the pair weird looks. The two had been scooting closer to each other the entire time, and eventually had just sat down next to each other on the couch. "Needless to say, we didn't get much sleep. Kagamin li-" Konata was cut off as a hand clamped over her mouth.

"I'm seriously going to have to do something about these dangerous comments of yours…" Kagami groaned.

Ayano looked a little concerned. "So, you two are…"

Kagami blushed a little. "Yeah. I'm sorry, Ayano. I know I should have said something sooner, but I know how you feel about homosexuality. It's just. I really need the support right now. Aside from Tsukasa, my family is very traditional. I seriously doubt this will go over well."

Konata just grinned at her. "It's ok, me and my dad can talk to them, he already knows I like girls!"

Kagami shook her head violently. "That would just make things worse."

Yui-chan plopped down next to them. "It's ok. We're your friends, we're all here to support you. Just look and Yutaka and Minami-chan!"

Kagami glanced over to the two first-years. Yutaka was grinning brightly, and even Minami had a hint of a smile. "Onee-san, you too? Oh, this is amazing! Now we can talk about all of this stuff normally!"

"I seriously doubt anything Konata has to say on the subject would be considered normal," Kagami and Ryuuko said in unison. Kagami gave him a look. "Hey, I just know what I know. And if you guys need a designated hetero to hang around on your dates so nobody in your family thinks they're dates, I'm game. Maybe Hiyorin would volun-" but a thought cut him off, and he shot his gaze to Patricia, who looked as alarmed as he felt. They both shot their gaze to Hiyori, who had passed out on the floor. "Hiyori!" the group yelled together.

It took a few moments to get Hiyori back to consciousness, having laid her out on the couch, and putting an icepack on her head. "Wha-what happened?"

Konata just shrugged. "You found out that Kagami and I got together last night," she said offhandedly. The mangaka spluttered, and shot straight up. "What? Are you serious? My sempai is a lesbian?"

Shiki interjected. "She's bisexual, which is just as good. Seriously, with all the gay girls popping up around your school, I might just have to make my stay here permanent…" she mused.

"Aww, hellz no!" Ryuuko exclaimed. "You are going home on Wednesday, end of discussion! I want my place to myself again!"

Shiki grumbled, and sulked back into her seat. "Don't worry about it," Kenji assured her. "I'm getting a place in the city, and I'm going to need a roommate. You can check in with me till you get your own place, I know you're not a big Hokkaido person. Besides, I don't think we can leave these kids alone just yet."

Kagami waived them off. "Yeah, yeah. But we still have some other issues to take care off. What were you girls talking about last night?" she asked Yutaka and Minami. The two blushed, as did Tsukasa and Miyuki.

Miyuki was the first to say something. "Well, um… Hiiragi-san, first off, congratulations! I know you two will be happy together!"

Tsukasa nodded vigorously in agreement. "Yeah, totally! You two were made for each other!"

"I'm not sure what I'm supposed to feel from that, but thank you. Your support means a lot to me, guys," she looked over at the three girls who hadn't said anything. "Misao, Patricia-san, and Kou-san, what's your take on this. I know it's a lot to handle-"

"Aw, don't worry about it!" Misao waved her off. "But Ayano owes me ten dollars, now!"

Ayano blushed furiously. "Misa-chan, you said you wouldn't tell!"

Kusakabe looked sheepish. "Oops, sorry…"

Kou gave them a look. "Well, I wasn't betting on anything like that, although I would've liked to know…" she nodded. Hiyori and Ryuuko groaned. Kou was a horrible gambler. "But it's not like I care about that kind of thing. With all the stories the Animation research club puts out, me being homophobic would be totally hypocritical. So, yeah."

Patty just gave her thumbs up. "Lesbians are neato!" she said in plain English. Ryuuko face vaulted, and Kenji did a small fist-pump.

"Yus! It's totally catching on!" The blonde boy exclaimed.

Ryuuko regained himself, and waved it off. "Alright, that's enough. So, what were you girls talking about?" he asked Yukata and Minami again. They regained their blush, and looked rather nervous. "Oh, come on. It's not like this is a big weekend for secrets. And besides, you've already come out of the closet, what could possibly more socially risqué, if not totally awesome, as that?"

The two looked at each other, and Minami nodded. "Well, it's like this…" Yutaka started.

Author's Note: Ok, I know it's kind of sudden, but if you look for earlier clues, it's there. Bonus points to those who can tell me where! And besides, after reading doujins like Lonely Kagami and Lucky Aogeki (both I highly recommend.), and reading fanfictions like Lucky Star: Truth or Dare, and it's sequel, Dare! (also HIGHLY recommended.), there is no way I wasn't going to do a Konami pairing. It HAD to be done. It's my favorite Yuri pairing ever, and I absolutely love those two. But don't worry, you guys. I'll make sure the OC pairs with someone you didn't expect! Everyone loves a surprise! And all the people that read this, and don't leave reviews, shame on you! You're making 75% of the girls in this fanfiction cry!

Kagami: Did you really have to do a pairing of us?

Daemon: Of course. It's practically cannon.

Kagami: Why? Why, oh god, why?

Daemon: You're one to talk. I got my copy of the Eunos Press Lucky Star Doujin from you.

Kagami (blushing furiously): You-you swore you wouldn't tell!

Daemon: And you promised not to complain.

Konata: Kagami! We're going to be late! The movie's starting!

Daemon (raises an eyebrow): Oh?

Kagami:… Shut up.


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Note: Right. Onwards, then.

Chapter 9: The Morning After Part 2: Being different

As it turned out, Yutaka's story was nothing more than asking generic questions about, as she put it, 'physical relationships,' and how to tell if they were ready for one. Ryuuko could appreciate her hesitation in asking, especially asking her cousin. Most of the girls were a little embarrassed to answer, but Ryuuko noticed one in particular that was downright uncomfortable.

He stepped behind Ayano, and gave her a quick tap on the back. He made a quick motion to the kitchen, moved for the door. She hesitated for a moment, but seeing the expression on his face, decided to go along. Once in the kitchen, he asked quietly, "You ok? Kagami mentioned a while back that you come from a very traditional family, but if this is too much, I-"

She waved a hand at him. "No, that's not it. It's just… I don't care if they're gay, my family practices Shinto as well, so it's not that big of an issue."

Ryuuko did a double take. "Wait, what? You mean, according to Shintoism, homosexuality is acceptable? I thought Shinto was a big reason it wasn't nowadays."

Ayano shook her head. "Not lately. There's a big scientific contribution to the pro- argument that I'm not clear on, but the general consensus is that there's no reason to be biased."

"So what's the issue?"

Ayano fidgeted a bit before answering. "It's… I'm fine with them dating, but, I don't think they should be… after only a day… I-"

"Whoa. Let me squish that bug right now. Neither of the two couples in question have had that kind of interaction. I can guarantee that," he chuckled at the end of his sentence, and settled a hand on her shoulder. "My room was directly above Konata and Kagami's. I didn't hear anything. And you can in this house, believe me. If anything, Yutaka and Minami are just being cautious. I've been there. Well, I've never been _there…_" he added, seeing the look on her face.

Ayano nodded. "I appreciate the concern. It just, hit home a little. My boyfriend's been asking me if I think we're ready for that step, and it's been something that's been on my mind lately, and-"

"Hey, hey, cool down. Let's take a breath here. We all go home tonight, so if you want to take some time by yourself, then-"

"Ok, it's my turn to interrupt," she laughed a little, and he balked. "I should be fine, just let me get something to eat, and-"

"BREAKFAST!" Ryuuko shouted, and bolted for the living room. Ayano blinked for a second, then heard him yell "BREAKFAST!" again, followed by heavy thuds as he ran up the stairs.

Ayano walked out to the living room, to be greeted by a mix of various stares from the other girls. Then everyone looked to Shiki.

"Oh, sure, like I know everything that goes on in that thick skull of his."

Later that day, after most of the group had settled on their rides home, and plans for the evening, Kenji pulled Ryuuko aside, into the room Ryuuko had used the night before. The younger boy took the opportunity to pack his sound equipment.

"Ok, I have to ask. Which one are you going for?" Kenji leaned against a wall, crossing his arms.

Ryuuko glanced up. "Not sure. I'm down two options, which leaves me with three. Patricia, Hiyori, and Kou," he stopped at a glance over to his friend, noticing the older guy's expression.

"Kou? You mean you're after my sister? And two other girls?"

Ryuuko shrugged, and glanced nervously to one side. "I wouldn't say 'after', more 'interested'."

Kenji took a step forward. "You better be careful, buddy. You hurt her, and-"

Ryuuko raised a hand. "You got it. Trust me, I'm not going to be a follow-up to Shiki. That's why I haven't so much as taken any of them out on a date. No lies, no misleading, no advances, till I'm totally sure who I'm into."

The blonde nodded. "You know it. But did you really have to bring the Shiki thing into this?"

"Hey, it's not like she thinks any less of you. She still does her classic tackle-hug, right?"

Kenji nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, just watch your step. I don't want you hurting the other girls, either."

Ryuuko grinned, and gave him a thumbs-up.

On their way down the stairs, Ryuuko asked, "So why did you offer Shiki a room at your place?"

Kenji just glared straight ahead, as Ryuuko finished his way downstairs. "You really shouldn't ask dangerous questions like that, kid," he growled a little.

The black-haired boy ignored him, and strolled into the living room. Most of the girls had split off into groups to talk. Ryuuko noticed that Shiki was talking to Officer Yui, and paused. "Um, Kenji?"

"I see it," the older of the two sounded about as uneasy as the younger felt. "This can't end well, can it?"

Ryuuko shook his head vigorously. "No. No, no, no , no. We gotta do something."

The two boys wasted no time in stepping themselves into Shiki and Yui's conversation. "What's up, guys?"

Shiki gave them a strange glance, but Yui just dived headlong in the conversation. "Hey guys, we're trying to figure out who's going where tonight. We know Miyuki's driving my cousin and her friends home, but that's about it. I drove Konata, Yutaka, Minami, and Hiyori here, but I have to leave soon, so I don't know how the other girl's are getting home."

Kenji raised a hand. "If they're ok with me, I can fit them into my vehicle. I only drove Kou here, and she probably won't have any problems with it. Let me go check with her," and he walked off.

Yui nodded approval, and mentioned something about asking the other girls their plans, leaving Shiki and Ryuuko alone. The older of the two turned on her brother. "So, Ryuu-kun," she said, in a voice dripping with false sweetness. Ryuuko took a step back.

"Yes?"

"About that song this morni-" but she didn't get a chance to finish her sentence before Ryuuko took off running. Shiki blinked, took a breath, and blinked slowly. Then she took off after him.

8888888

Kagami and Konata had taken to a back room to talk, as well as to avoid getting run over. Most of the group was up and active now, packing, storing equipment, and making plans. Not to mention the sibling tearing their way through the halls.

"Do you think it'll sit well with them?" Kagami asked quietly. She fidgeted in her seat, a tinge of worry floating freely in the back of her mind.

"Don't worry about it!" Konata assured her. "As far as they're concerned, we only started dating yesterday!"

"I don't know, that story was kind of weak…" Kagami sighed. "I don't like lying to my friends, and upuntil last night, we had no way of knowing what the others would thing of two girls dating. Remind me to thank Minami and Yutaka for coming out of the closet when they did. I don't want to think what would have happened if they'd found out some other way. Or not at all. I didn't want to spend the rest of my life hiding from them in plain sight-"

Konata interrupted her with a quick kiss. "But it didn't happen that way. And if someone finds out about how it really happened, would they really be able to blame us for it? It's not like homosexuality is as popular here as it is in America. Even with the new shifts in Shinto principle."

Kagami shook her head. "I just think we're being a little too underhanded here. And how about you, leading Ryuuko along the entire time?"

Konata gave her a look. "Actually..."

The twin-tailed girl did a double take. "What? Actually what?"

Konata grinned. "He figured it out pretty early on. He's been playing along pretty well, but he's actually already figured out who he's interested in."

"How can you tell?"

"Call it woman's intuition."

Kagami raised an eyebrow. "Don't you have to be a woman to have that? I didn't think little girls got that."

Konata frowned, and pounced Kagami into a couch. "Tickle fight!" she yelled.

88888888

The bags were packed. The cars were loaded. Everyone was ready to go home. Konata and her gang getting a ride from Miyuki, Kou and Kenji driving most of the first-year girls. Shiki and Ryuuko taking Patricia home, Yui going off on her own. Kusakabe and Ayano were getting picked up by Ayano's boyfriend. But there was still one more thing to settle.

"Ok, so we talked about it, and Hiyorin and I have decided on how to figure out who the winner of last night's truth or dare game is!" Patricia announced. The crowd stood at attention; almost everyone had forgotten about the tie. "Since we can't do another round to figure out the victor, we decided to break it down to a quick game of rock-paper-scissors!"

Most of the group groaned. Hiyori waved her hands frantically. "Well, we don't have a lot of time, and we didn't want this to bleed into the school week, that might raise a lot of questions that nobody's ready to answer," she gave Konata and Yutaka quick glances as she said this, and most people understood.

The two girls turned to each other, and Shiki stood off to the side. "Alright girls, one throw, break any ties, no rematches, got it? On three! One, two, Three!"

Hiyorin threw Scissors "Shining Dual-Edge Attack!"

Patricia threw Rock. "Dopplar Meteor!"

Ryuuko face vaulted. "Ow."

Patricia reveled briefly in her victory, and glanced around for her victim. She looked to the black-haired boy as he was standing. "Ryuuko!"

Ryuosen froze, as if standing perfectly still would keep anyone from seeing him. Shiki pushed him over. "Nope, you're still there."

He stood up straight, gave his older sister a glare, and looked to Patty. "What's up?"

"I dare you to sing your newest song! You know, the one you were working on last week!"

Ryuuko did a double take. "But, I don't know all the chords for it yet! I'm still working on the solo!"

Patricia waved him off. "We still have a karaoke machine, remember? I just want to hear the English version, anyway!"

Shiki gave him a glance as he opened his mouth to argue, closed it, opened it again, then closed it and walked off to reset the karaoke equipment. "Why do you do all your songs in English, anyway?" she asked quietly.

Ryuuko balked, then blushed slightly. "That's a secret. Now then-"

Shiki raised an eyebrow. "Are you talking about-"

"-No more words from you!" He interjected, looking over his sister's shoulder to the rest of the group, where they were waiting less-than patiently. A few girls looked as though their curiosity had been piqued, but he'd deal with that later. With everything set up again, he'd run out of things to stall with, so he pulled up the song on screen, and recognizance flared in a few of the girl's eyes. And Kenji's.

"What is it with you and singing chick songs?"

Ryuuko shrugged him off, and as the tempo flared, he tapped his feet, setting his rhythm.

And he sang:

"_Lis~ten to my sweet and bitter beauty song_

_Some~times you've just got to stop and sing along_

_Go ahead, forward back, right or left_

_So many directions, different ways to go_

_If you find your path, step into the light_

_Just make sure not to fall in the holes_

_Lis~ten to my sweet and bitter beauty song_

_Begging like a dog won't get you anywhere,_

_On your hands and knees is no way to move_

_Stand up for yourself, and get on your feet_

_Only from there can you find your groove_

_This time~ it won't be easy for you_

_Your heart~ will beat harder than you thought it could _

_if you learn to push yourself_

_Noone said it was easy_

_It won't be over quickly_

_You will only enjoy it if you learn to work through _

_the pain of being lonely_

_You'll overcome it only_

_If you listen to your heart and let it guide you through the fog of distrust_

_If I break a string, I'll get it fixed_

_Learning from mistakes has made me who I am_

_This is the lesson I pass on to you_

_Progress comes from trying over again_

_Lis~ten to my sweet and bitter beauty song_

_This song may not be the style now_

_But I'll do anything not to be the same_

_I'll undertand if you think I'm wrong_

_If you want rewards, prepare to risk some shame_

_Sometimes, you've got to be a bit crazy_

_I sing, and dance and play guitar because they're all the things I love_

_I know the risks I'm taking_

_With the art I'm making_

_But I know there's more to gain than lose by moving forward so_

_Don't feel sorry for me_

_Focus on the glory_

_Be the kind of person that I can be proud to know_

_(guitar solos)_

_Be your own kind of person_

_Free from subversion_

_Willing to take risks to prove your place in this world and_

_Stand on your feet and_

_Keep up with the beat and_

_Be the kind of person that you started out wanting to be_

_There's nothing to be scared of_

_Or to be ashamed of_

_Being someone special is something to be praised for_

_Follow your own path_

_Step around the holes and_

_See the kind of future that you were always meant to create_

_Lis~ten to my sweet and bitter beauty song_

_Lis~ten to my sweet and bitter beauty song_

_Lis~ten to my sweet and bitter beauty song_

_Some~times you've just got to stop and sing along_."

Ryuuko had to remind himself that the silence after a performance wasn't always a bad thing, as no one made any movements or showed any reaction after he was done. Then, a few of the girls started clapping, a couple others cheered, and his otaku friends gave him some appraising looks and criticism. Then they all stopped, as a knock on the door made itself heard. Shiki went to check, and Ryuuko repacked the equipment.

"So, what was that song for, anyway?" He heard Konata ask behind him.

Ryuuko nodded to her. "Hey. Well, I've been trying to think about what I want to do for the culture festival when we get back. I know most of the big clubs are going to use the last parts of summer to put their projects together, and then we have the month of school, but aside from some class projects, I've never done anything big for it before. So I thought about putting together K-On tribute concert. There's a new song, No, Thank You, that I want to work on next, too."

Konata nodded. "Patricia has some ideas for the festival, too. But I don't know where you're going to get other band members."

"Let me worry about that," he said, and rejoined the rest of the group. Those at the door had been Kagami's older sisters, who had arrived to help with transportation. It looked like their sleepover adventure was finally over.

88888888888

"I have NO IDEA where to get other band members!" Ryuuko screamed from his room. Ever since Konata had brought it up, he hadn't been able to stop fretting over it. "This sucks!"

Shiki, who had taken to catching a nap on the couch, awoke suddenly and crashed to the floor. "Oh my god… They're out there, all right. Those people who, when faced with a problem they hadn't even thought of before, start to obsess over it."

The two had gotten home recently, having driven Patricia, and a couple other girls. Ryuuko had gone straight to his room to plan. One other bad habit that he had, once it kicked in, was the tendency to focus on one thing and one thing only when the occasion arose. Shiki realized that it would take a great deal to distract him from his unbidden worry.

"Quit your bitching, or I'll come in there myself!" That doesn't mean she was willing to try. "If you're so worried about it, why not ask the other girls?"

"Because they're already planning something. They won't even tell me what it is," he groaned, finally opening his door. He flopped onto a bean bag chair, and stared at the ceiling. "I can't exactly hold auditions, I doubt there are that many people who'd want to help perform in English."

"So sing it in Japanese," Shiki grumbled. She looked up quickly, as she could practically hear Ryuuko's head snapping into place. Literally, it made a couple popping sounds, and he groaned again and rubbed the back of his neck.

"No. Not a chance in hell. You know I never sing that way," he growled.

"I don't see what the big deal is, so you sound-"

"Don't say it!" He barked. Then he fell back, studying the insides of his eyelids. "God, this is why I never write my own material."

Shiki raised an eyebrow. "I've always wondered about that. Why not just write your own song in English?"

Ryuuko's eyes snapped open. "Did… did you just have a good idea?" A pillow promptly accelerated at his face.

"I'm perfectly capable of making valid points and bringing up good ideas now and then. Besides, without my mind being clouded over with les-"

"I'm not listening!" he shouted, shoving his fingers in his ears. "La la la la la. I don't understand those difficult Japanese words!"

"I'm not surprised," Shiki grinned. Ryuuko didn't take long to pick it up.

"You can be pretty messed up, you know. Just because Japanese was my second language…"

"Hey, it's not my fault you're the youngest. Hell, I'm kinda glad dad remarried when he did. Ity would have sucked to go through life without a mom," Shiki sighed and fell back into the couch.

Ryuuko mulled it over. His mom, a graduate from Harvard law with a thing for buff Japanese guys, had married their father a couple of years after his first wife walked out on him. Since he was _her _son, and Shiki and his older brother were children of their dad's first wife, his mother had wanted to do something to make him stand out. So she made sure English was his first language. Then something clicked. "Weren't you supposed to go back a week or so ago?" he asked.

Shiki shrugged it off. "Apparently, Onii-chan's visit is lasting longer than usual. The 'rents don't want to say anything, cause he's their son, and our brother, but the only other option is-"

"Not an option," Ryuuko and Shiki said together. Then Ryuuko continued. "Aw, hell. Well, it's not like you staying here has been a bad thing. Hell, you've even helped me out a few times." He mulled the thought around for a bit, and sighed. "You said you were planning on moving out of the dojo when you found a place, right?"

Shiki nodded. "Why, you got an idea?"

"Yeah. I'm probably going to regret this, but…" he sighed. "Why not just live here with me?"

Shiki paused for a second, and her eyes lit up. "You mean it? Really? That's awesome! I knew you were my favorite brother!" she exclaimed, then dove to give him a hug.

He stopped her with a hand in her face. "But there's one condition."

"Whu's dat?" she muffled through his hand.

"You have to get a job," he told her, and grinned maniacally.

88888888

Patricia had just finished unpacking, and was settling down with a new manga, when she heard a distinctly feminine anguished wail of "Nooooo!" from next door. She got up, and got halfway to the door to check it out, when she remembered what had happened the last time.

"Let them sort this one out," she mumbled, and went back to reading.

Author's Note: Shorter Chapter, but I really wanted to update. Apparently, people like this story.


	10. Chapter 10

Author's Note: This Chapter is going to be filled with references, plot points, and bad puns. Please read.

And review. Muahaha.

Chapter 10: Just a Day in the Life

Ryuuko awoke to a realization that made him very, very uncomfortable. It was Monday. This thought hit him harder than it usually did, mainly due to the fact that most of his weekend was spent messing around on the other side of the prefecture in an isolated house in the woods with a bunch of pretty girls. He sighed to himself, wishing that it was actually as dirty as it sounded. He was starting to get lonely. Then something else struck him, that got him out of bed pretty quickly. A Nerf dart.

Ryuuko looked at the small yellow foam projectile on his forehead, and back to his sister, and back to the dart. "Really, is this necessary?" he growled slightly, and she leaned further on the door, stepping the rest of the way into the door.

"Well, you didn't sound like you were getting out of bed any time soon, so I had to make sure you weren't late to school. With everything that happened this weekend, you don't want the girls to think you're avoiding them, do you?" She grinned at him, shot a couple of darts into his chest, and dashed out of the room.

"Damn her and her common sense…" he moaned, throwing on the first outfit he got ahold of, then remembered- shower, then uniform, then food. It was a school day. "Damn, double damn, infinity times end-of-the-world num-booger triple spoot secret damn." He let fly some more creative curses, and set into his normal routine. First, the shower.

At that point, Ryuuko realized that today might turn out to be a very bad day indeed. Because as soon as he stepped into the shower, it blitzed him. "What the hell? SHIKI! WHAT DID YOU DO TO OUR SHOWER?"

He dove out of the shower stall at speeds reserved for crack heads , and hit the ground hard. At which point, Shiki poked her head into the bathroom. "Oh, yeah, by the way, the shower is broken," she moved to close the door. "Oh, and put some clothes on before you go to school, I don't want to get that kind of call from the board."

He grumbled something unintelligible, dried himself off, and settled for just scrubbing himself down with the washtub. Then he proceeded to step two of his routine; clothes.

Yet again, something went wrong. He made a mental note to make a list of the things that went wrong today, so he could properly gripe about them in order. This time, it was much more simple than a broken shower head: he had forgotten to do laundry. Thus, the only shirts that were clean were his winter uniform black shirts, and his street clothes. Praying no one would notice that he hadn't changed into his summer uniform white t-shirts, he threw a black tank-top on, then buttoned his uniform over it.

His sister gave him a look as he stepped into the living room. "Aren't you supposed to be wearing-"

"-My summer uniform? Yes, but they're not clean. Jeez," he sighed, "Today is going to be one bad thing after another, isn't it?"

"Probably, but I might be able to help. If you're going to wear that in the summer, at least make it look good," she said simply, getting up from the couch, and adjusting his collar. She folded it down, and undid the top two buttons of his shirt. "There, just enough chest showing for some attention, and… other things, not enough to get yelled at. You can just say you forgot."

"We've been wearing the summer uniform for two weeks."

"Ouch." She flinched.

"Yeah," he grumbled, then, noticing the time- "Holy crap! I'm gonna be late!" He grabbed his bag, prayed everything was in order, and in the bag, grabbed a piece of toast, and hauled ass for the door.

"Ryuuko, I can-" but she was to late, as Shiki called out for her younger brother, the door slammed, and she finished quietly, "-drive you to school."

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Ryuuko had just made it to the train, when a familiar voice called out to him. "Ryuosen-san? That you? Why do you look so out of breath?" It was Ayano. She patted him slightly on the back

He looked up to say hi, and, noticing that she had leaned towards him, because he was hunched over, got a more-than-decent view down her shirt-

Bolting straight upright, he answered quickly "I was in a h-" but was cut off as his head cracked against a guard rail. Almost instantly, he went down. Groaning, and holding his head, he looked up at the orange-haired girl, and realized he had a good angle on her legs-

He turned his head to the side quickly, and hit another bar. Now holding both sides of his head, he allowed a very concerned Ayano to help him to a seat. "Are you ok?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah, just… it's been a string of bad luck so far, and it doesn't look like it's going to clear out anytime soon. So how was the last part of your weekend?" he added conversationally, trying not to glance at her legs. He had gotten a decent look, and it distracted him. _No, bad Ryuuko, she's taken, _he thought to himself.

She heaved a low sigh. "Not great. My day's kind of going downhill, too. I woke up later than I wanted, and because my parents use the same car, and my dad had to go to work early, I had to take the train, which usually doesn't happen."

"I was wondering. I usually don't see you on this train, then again, I usually catch the one before this, just so I'm not scrambling to get everything done right before class. I like to have a little time to relax before Ms. Kuroi starts beating be over the head with info. Or in general. You know, speaking of cars, I probably could have… oh, damn," he muttered.

"What?"

"I forgot that my sister has a car. Hey, speaking of, couldn't you have called your boyfriend for a ride? Or does he have a conflicting schedule?"

At this, she sighed again, and her cheeks reddened slightly. "Well, I probably shouldn't talk to him right away…"

"What's up? Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"Yeah, that's about it. Remember how I told you he was asking me about taking our relationship to another level?" she fidgeted awkwardly while she talked.

"Yeah, kinda. Hey, if I'm stepping on darker territory here, then-"

"-No, it's ok. I hadn't really confided that in other people, so it's not really something I can bring up with the others. Of course, the only reason I mentioned it was because I was slightly freaked out on Saturday. Anyway, it came up again yesterday when he called me and asked where I was all weekend, I didn't tell him where I was going, just that I was at a sleepover with some good friends."

"I bet that might have set him off a bit," Ryuuko chuckled a little, then groaned again. Moving his head hurt a little.

She laughed along with him. "Yeah, a bit. Especially since Kusakabe had come home and gone off on practically everything that happened over the weekend. It's not that it bothered her at all, she just talks first and thinks later. I've been trying to work with her on it, but… yeah. Anyway, somewhere in the conversation he got a little insistent, not really bad, but I started to feel a little pressured. So I told him how I felt, and for some reason, he got really upset with me. So now I'm worried about what's going to happen today. Kusakabe's older brother also went to Ryuou, and with Misao's tendency to talk, I'm scared that everyone at school will find out about Hiiragi-san and Izumi-san, and those two first years. It could be bad."

She got more solemn as she spoke, and Ryuuko moved to drape a tentative arm over her shoulder, then thought better of it. He still didn't know her very well. Even if she was pretty. He settled for smiling at her. "Hey, these are some pretty tough girls we're talking about. And even if it seems a little rough for them, they've got plenty of friends to help them out. Like us," he added, clenching his fist in a mock-heroic pose. "We'll take care of them. In the meantime, this boyfriend of yours…"

Their conversation trailed on for a bit, until the train announced that they had arrived at their stop, at which point they stepped off, joining the rest of the wave of students making their way to the grounds. They talked through the gates, through changing their shoes, and all the way up to their classrooms. It wasn't until they parted ways into their separate classes was Ryuuko reminded of the day that he was having. A reminder which presented itself with red hair, and a bad attitude. "Ryuosen! I understand that you had an entire house full of girls to yourself this weekend! What's up with that?" Sakura all but shrieked at him. _Dead puppies counter: 1,_ Ryuuko thought to himself.

"Look, it's nowhere as bad as it seems. A few of my friends and I threw together a slumber party to kill time over the weekend, and a bunch more people got invited than I originally planned."

"That's not how I heard it," Sakura's carrot-top apprentice, Hibiki, chimed in, grinning rudely.

Ryuuko raised a brow at her. "Well, now I know who's conducting the rumor-train, so let's have it. What did you hear?"

Hibiki's expression faltered for a bit, but corrected itself. "Something along the lines of you getting all these girls in one place so you can shop for a boyfriend. And what's this we hear about you hanging ut with a couple of lesbians?"

The black-haired boy twitched slightly, and pushed by them. "Just lay off, ok? It's been a very bad morning."

Xxxxxxxxxxx

It didn't get much better after that. Apparently, his school bag had _not_ contained everything he had wanted it to, namely, his homework from Friday. So he'd had to stand in the hall during his first period. His second, he'd forgotten the textbook entirely, and had to use an old classroom book, which was mostly torn and full of graffiti. He barely made out the normal text amid the scribbles, and, when trying to erase a few pencil marks off one of the pages so he could read the problem properly, as they were answering questions straight out of the book, his teacher snapped at him, and sent him to the principal's office for vandalizing school property.

After explaining the situation to the principle, who simply advised him to bring issues like this to the teacher's attention instead of fixing it himself, he was sent back to class, in time for home-ec, where his class was helping with luck. At that point, everyone had paired off, so he was left by himself to cook his portion.

It didn't help, that throughout the day, he was getting weird and dark stares from people who normally ignored him, or some of the girls who fawned over him slightly. And all morning, none of the girls in his class that he knew were talking to him, save for Ayano-san. A couple of times, Konata looked ready to say something, then seemed to think better of it, and just went back to what she was doing.

So, at lunch, he finally addressed the issue. Sitting down with the group, who immediately started to look at each other with a bit of unease, Ryuuko shook his head slightly, and asked, "Ok, what's the deal? You guys have been avoiding me like a bad plate of curry. Did I do something over the weekend to piss you all off, or-"

"You mean aside from trash our reputations?" Kagami snapped. When Ryuuko opened his mouth to respond, she cut him off. "No, don't You're not sweet-talking this one, Ryuosen. Thanks to that little sleepover, everyone thinks your some kind of playboy or something, who just wrangled up a bunch of girls for a good time over the weekend. And now, we look like a bunch of hussies for hanging out with you!"

"That wasn't-"

But this time, Konata interrupted him. "I know that wasn't what you were doing, Ryuuko-kun," the use of a more proper nickname did not escape him, "But now, we're having even more problems than normal. And it doesn't help that, somehow, the entire school knows about me and Kagami. I'm not as concerned about it, but you can understand how she feels. And I'm really worried about what this might do to Yu-chan. So, please, for now, can you just let us alone?"

Ryuuko blinked a few times, thought about saying something, then, seeing the looks on the other girl's faces, decided to simply leave, and take his lunch outside. It was going to be a very long day.

Of course, outside wasn't much better. Within seconds of him sitting down, it seemed, a group of boys approached the bench he was sitting at.

At first, he didn't look up, but when they started talking to him, then yelling at him, he finally set his food aside, and stood up. "What can I do for you?" he asked quietly, addressing a guy who was standing a little farther forward than the rest, someone he recognized from his class as being named Shuto-something. He was, tall, well built, and looked to be a member of a martial arts club, if not a gang. He was bald, with a couple piercing, and looked rather aggressive.

"What you can _do_," the bald kid snapped, "Is stop messing with the girls in our school. Why don't you move back to Hokkaido where you belong? Go study some snow or something!"

"Yeah!" another guy behind him yelled. "Stop messing around with our classmates, and hit the road!"

Ryuuko just raised a brow at him. "Ok, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you are all either related to, or have crushes on, one or more of the girls that has either a, sent me a love letter; b, confessed to me in person; or c, was at the sleepover last weekend-"

"You bet your ass! Every guy in this group has a good reason to beat you down! And don't go calling it a sleepover, you cheap man-ho! Hell, you even dress the part! We all know what you were doing this weekend!" Shuto yelled at him. A large roar of agreement surrounded him: they were drawing a crowd, and not very many of them were on his side. He looked around a little, and saw a couple faces he knew; Sakura and her friends, Ayano and Misao, Yutaka and Minami.

"Look, you guys, I really don't want to do this. I'm already on thin ice after I attacked that teacher, and I've got people watching me that I really don't want to get into a fight in front of, so-"

"Nobody's listening!" The bald id interrupted him. "Not one person here wants to hear what you have to say, and almost all of them want to see you get your face beat in!"

Ryuuko paused for a second, and mulled it over. _If I get into a fight here, I might get suspended, or worse, expelled. And than I'd have to go back to Hokkaido- No. I can't live in the same building as my brother, we'd go crazy after a few days. I can't just walk away, I don't really have a choice. Maybe if a teacher or something-_ but he cut that thought short, as he saw a couple female teachers giving him the same glare the students were, and a few male teachers, too. There were a couple that looked like they might have helped him, if doing so wouldn't have put them in a very bad position. _Jesus. I can't even make friends properly. So much for the girlfriend idea. I guess I-_

But that thought was interrupted for him, as Shuto took a blind shot to the side of his face, and he staggered back. He looked up quickly, to avoid another blow, and tried one last time to explain himself. "Look, I know what people are saying, but that's nowhere near what happened! I was just-"

"Shut up, you freak!" the bald boy shouted again, and cracked him in the face with a straight jab. Ryuuko heard a definitive crack, and hit his knees for the second time that day. Now his head was _really_ bothering him, and, confirming with a tender tap to his nose, yep, it was broken. Now he was in a lot of pain.

And there wasn't anything he could do about it. He just stood up, in time to have his legs kicked out from under him. He heard another crack. But he tried again, this time, his 'opponent' gave him a chance to stand. "So what?" he asked quietly.

Shuto cocked his head at him. "So what? Is that all you have to say?"

"Exactly. So what if you beat me down. Think that will make anybody here feel any better? I can just imagine that conversation later on. 'Hey, way to go, man, you beat down that kid that didn't fight back!' 'You're so cool!' Yeah, that's going to look real good. And I bet everyone here is going to feel so much better about themselves later on for watching someone get the shit kicked out of them. But you know what? Go ahead. If that makes you feel better, feel free to beat me down. Lord knows I've taken beatings before. Will tearing me apart get you to forgive me, or at least, will you let me explain myself, or something, after I get back from Urgent Care? Because honestly, I'm not who you think I am. I'm just some guy who plays the guitar, who wants to hang out with his friends just like everyone else," he groaned, trying not to fall over, and watched the world swim in front of him as he spoke. "I don't know where the hell you get off judging me like that, or where you get these assumptions, but I refuse… to…"

All of a sudden, the ground rushed up to meet him, and the world went dark.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Ryuuko awoke with an overwhelming sense of deja' vu. Again, he was aware of the typical smells of a hospital room, and again, he awoke to see a female face hovering above his. Although this time, it was Yutaka.

"Wh.. Um… wha?" He asked unintelligibly.

Yutaka heaved a sigh. "Oh, thank goodness. We thought you wouldn't wake up. Minami-chan, Ryuuko-san is awake!" the short redhead announced, and leaned out of his field of view, only to be replaced by Minami.

"Good. I'm glad your awake. You scared us a little," she said, then, seeing the very confused look on his still-somewhat broken face, she explained, "I'm the medical volunteer for our class, and had to take Yutaka in shortly after you passed out. The sight of blood makes her queasy, and you were bleeding a lot. So they took you to the hospital, and we volunteered to go with. We couldn't really get ahold of your family members, so-"

Ryuuko started to nod, then let out a bark of pain, his head was now killing him. On top of the blows to the face, and the broken nose, he strongly suspected he had another migraine. The girls jumped back, and he apologized quietly. "Sorry about that. But yeah, I've heard Yutaka doesn't have a great constitution."

"Yeah…" the shorter girl said quietly.

"Must be hard. But from what I've heard, and seen, you're a pretty good person. Even with a handicap like that, you've got a lot of potential to do lot of good. And speaking of a lot of good, what happened after I passed out? I'm guessing my 'final words' didn't do me a whole lot of good, did they,"

"Actually-" Minami and Yutaka started together, then paused, looked at each other, and laughed slightly

"It did more than you think," said a new voice, again, familiar. Then, Ayano stepped into view. "A lot of people were really upset with Shuto after you passed out. The general consensus was, it wasn't something you should have gotten beat up for. Then, some of the girls and I started talking, and we've been quashing these rumors all over school. Izumi-san and Martin-san have even gone so far as to find another way to boost your popularity." She chuckled a little.

"Oh, gods, what did they do?" He asked hesitantly.

Ayano shrugged. "Well, after they confirmed the rumors that Izumi-san and Hiiragi-san were dating, they started overplaying your role in their coming out of the closet, saying how accepting you were, and how, if you hadn't gone through all the trouble of setting up such a comfortable environment for them, they never would have been able to tell people, even their friends, the truth. Now, it seems, people thnk that the entire reason you set up that sleepover was to help them come out of the closet at all. So now, on top of being the guy who saved the headmaster's daughter from a rapist, and the Animation Club's 'Mascot', you're now the guy who wouldn't fight back, because he knew it was wrong, and he stood by his morals, as well as an equal rights advocate, and some kind of friend-of-the-century."

"Oh, son of a frickin' infinity times end-of-the-world num-booger triple-spoot secret damn. I just got all the letters cleared out of my desk Friday. Are they really pushing it that far?"

"Well," Yutaka started. "Onee-chan feels really bad about what she said to you earlier, so she wanted to make it up to you. Some of the other girls have been helping a lot, trying to get people to like you again, it seems to be working okay!" She looked really excited.

At that point, Ryuuko heard the sliding door kick open again, followed by a cry of "Ryuukyon!" followed by a group exclamation of "Ryuukun!" And, all at once, he was surrounded by the Animation Research Club, along with Konata and Kagami.

"What are you all doing out of class?" He asked weakly, then something dawned on him.

"Class?" Konata asked, then chuckled. It seems she had the same thought. "You've been out for most of the day! Class just got out! We all came down to the hospital to see you, don't sound so grumpy!"

Had he not suspected it might make him pass out again, Ryuuko would have shaken his head. "So I hear you've spent most of the day embellishing me a little, have you?"

It was Kagami's turn to laugh. "We actually didn't need to do that much. That little pass-out pep-talk you gave hit home with a few people. A lot of the students in the courtyard started to think pretty quickly, given what they'd seen: one kid, standing against a group of bullies, just trying to talk thngs out peacefully. Of course, I seriously doubt they'd be so forgiving if you'd swung a punch."

"Honestly, had I not passed out when I had, I might have. I wasn't even trying to convince people at that point. I was just pissed off. Then again, the reason I didn't swing at him earlier was because I knew I'd get suspended. There's only so many times you can wail on someone in 'self-defense' and not get kicked to the curb. And I don't really want to go back to Hokkaido."

"Well, you should take a couple of days off, anyway," Minami added.

"And let all those letters build up? No way. Besides, we had plans in club today, now we have to spend tomorrow catching up. And I missed an entire afternoon of classes. Plus, this morning was a total bust. I've got so much to catch up on, missing another day would probably break me. And I'm already in a few pieces. And again, speaking of, I heard something crack when he kicked my legs. What happened?"

Minami and Yutaka glanced at each other. "Well…" Yutaka started nervously.

"We almost did have to send you to the hospital for that, but fortunately, the school nurse was able to set you up pretty easily. It's not that bad, you know," Minami explained.

Ryuuko was worried now. "Um, what do you mean, not that bad?"

Yutaka fidgeted. Well, she said it was just a minor fracture, so…"

"A minor fracture? You mean?"

"Hey, Ryuukyon, can I sign your cast?" Konata asked excitedly.

" Damn. Just… damn."

Xxxxxxxxxx

As it turned out, Ryuuko did end up spending the next day at home. And the couple weeks after that. Of course, he wasn't alone. Shiki was there for large chunks of the day, but made an effort to leave the house and look for work each day. And, of course, he had students drop in after school hours to check on him, usually in groups. First, on Tuesday afternoon, it was just his friends. Konata and Kagami, Tsukasa, Miyuki, and even Ayano and Misao showed up. Wednesday brought the Animation Research club, who had thrown together a large folded card for him, and along with them, came Minami and Yutaka. Of course, Minami dropped by every day, even with Konata, and thus, so did Yutaka. She had been assigned to keep an eye on him, by association, but Yutaka hinted that she might have volunteered to help.

Of course, his parents dropped by, one at a time, making sure at least someone was home at the dojo. His father spent the entire time giving him lectures on fights and girls, and his mother spent most of the time trying to convince him to let her cut his hair. Neither of these things really worked that well.

Of course, with the groups, and Yutaka and Minami, another visitor started showing up more and more often, Ayano. First, just that Tuesday, then, again on Friday, then on Sunday, and every day his second week. According to her, things weren't going very well in a few areas. Her boyfriend was still arguing with her, and the more he heard, the more Ryuuko came to the conclusion that the guy was a douche bag. In addition, Her parent's weren't very approving of Kagami anymore, and had begun to question Ayano's taste in friends. So she was looking to spend her time elsewhere, and ended up helping him study.

This proved to lead to a small development on the following Wednesday, when Ryuuko heard a knock at the door. He was a little surprised, because his visitors usually showed up earlier than that and so he'd assumed no one was coming. He crutched himself over to the door, and opened it a crack. Seeing it was just Ayano, he backed up, and let the door swing the rest of the way open. He also noticed she was crying.

"Ay-Ayano, are you ok? What's wrong?" he asked, and limped out of the way, motioning for her to come in, and sit down.

She kind of meandered over to the couch, and sat down quietly. It wasn't until Ryuuko plopped down next to her that she said anything. "We-we got into another really bad fight. I… I'm worried he might break up with me…"

Ryuuko's neck cricked a little. "What? Why? Because you don't think you're ready for-"

"It's not just that," she explained. "He, he doesn't like that one of my best friends is gay. He's really conservative about that. And he doesn't want me hanging around them. He…" she trailed off, not sure if she should continue.

"So you have friends that are different than the norm. Big deal. It's not like he has to hang out with them, right?"

"It's more than that. He thinks that I don't want to have sex with him _because_ my friend is gay. He thinks… he thinks I'm turning gay, too. He called me some really nasty things in our last fight. I'm pretty worried about it."

Ryuuko almost chuckled, mostly out of nerves, but held it back. "That is… that's the biggest load of crap I've heard all day, and I talked to Konata during lunch. How the hell does he come to that conclusion."

"I don't know… Misao said he had a tendency to be paranoid about homosexuality, but… I didn't think he'd be so mean about it, especially to me…" she trailed off again, this time into tears, and Ryuuko didn't hesitate to put an arm around her this time.

"I know I've probably said this before, but I think the guy's a-'

"-Jerk, yeah. You might have said something," she finished for him, a small giggle interrupting sobs.

"Well, that's not what I was going to say, but that works," he shrugged.

"I know. But I figured we should keep it a little clean. She wiped her eyes a couple of times, and looked up at him. "Besides, if we always let you say what you wanted to, things might get out of hand." She smiled a little at him.

"So you're just going to tell me what to say from now on, is that it?" he asked, a tint of humor in his voice. She didn't miss it.

"That depends, will you listen?" he noticed that she had inched a little closer while she talked. _Oh, that might not be a good thing. She said _fight_, not _break-up.

"I guess I might. So, what do you want me to say now?" he asked quietly. Unconsciously, he tugged her a little bit. She let him.

"It's not so much what I want you to say, it's more…" she trailed off, dragging the last word a little, so that he couldn't help but stare at her lips. She leaned in a little more, and he inched back just a tad.

"Ayano, I don't think-" he started, but didn't finish. _Would it be so bad if they broke p? He's been nothing but mean to her since we were at the house. Of course, that would mean the break up is _entirely _my fault, so. But she's really, really cute. And she wants to… so…_

His train of thought slowly faded to fog as he let her lips meet his, then he slowly let himself melt into the kiss, and his thoughts faded away.

_Author's Note: _Yeah, yeah. I know, I rush things a little. But there's more to this, so don't go anywhere. Again, sorry for the horrible delays, but I got other stuff, you know. Also, 50,000 words! You've just read a light novel! YAY!


	11. Chapter 11

Author's Note: Back by popular demand! Of one person….

Chapter 11: A Fresh Turn of Events

Sometimes, there are things in this world that you just don't question. Sometimes, things happen, and when they do, they feel like, at that moment, everything leading up to and including that moment is exactly as it should be.

To Ryuuko, making out with Ayano Minegeshi was one of those moments. At first, he attributed the kiss to Ayano being upset, to needing something more than a hug. He tried to rationalize that what he was doing was ok. Then, Ayano's tongue brushed his lips, and he stopped thinking at all.

It was getting in the way.

After a few moments, they broke apart, and Ryuuko's ability for cognitive thinking resurfaced. Slowly, but he was getting there. "Um… uh, whajushappen?" Very slowly.

"Let me try that again," he added, after a short pause, in which Minegeshi looked thoroughly confused. "What just happened?"

The orange-haired girl fidgeted a little. "I-I'm not sure. It just.. It was what I wanted to do. So…"

Ryuuko sighed, and adjusted his position on the couch. Ayano leaning against him had bent him slightly over the armrest. "Ok, that's simple enough. I think," he glanced over at her. She looked rather uneasy. "So, what do you want to do now? Is this one of those 'It only happened once, please don't tell anyone about it?' Or…" he trailed off, not sure if he wanted to voice the alternative.

Ayano filled the silence. "I could use a soda."

Ryuuko grinned, mostly to himself, and hobbled into the kitchen. He reached for the fridge handle, but instead of opening it, just leaned his head on the door. _So what now? Do I just pretend it didn't happen, and we go on talking about other stuff? Or should I do something about it? How would I even start? I mean, she's cute, smart, according to Misao and Kagami, she's a great friend, but I know next to nothing about her, aside from the fact that she has a boyfriend. Who's a couple years older than her. Jesus, can't I just be the guy in the background for once?_

"Ryuuko?" a soft voice interrupted his thoughts. He looked up to see Ayano giving him a worried look, and he realized he hadn't even opened the fridge yet.

"I'm alright, just a little overheated. The outside of the fridge is nice and cold, so I thought I'd cool off," _way to go, numbnuts. Like she'll buy that._

"Oh, ok," she half-whispered. He cracked open the fridge, and grabbed a couple cans. Kicking the door closed, he reached out to hand her one, but she didn't move.

"Hey, are you alright?" he asked quietly. For some reason, he felt like they should be very quiet right now. Just a mood thing, he guessed.

She paused, then shook her head a little. "I'm fine. It's just… um…"

He put the drinks on the counter, leaned on his crutch. "What's up?"

"Are you… upset with me? For kissing you without… without asking?" She looked up at him, shyly.

He stopped for a second, then cracked a grin. "Ayano, I'm fine. I'm just worried about you. I'm not exactly going to complain if a pretty girl wants to kiss me, and besides, most men prefer a woman who takes the lead in some situations."

At that point, she too, cracked a small smile, "Then, if you don't mind… could we, maybe, do it again?"

"Well," he started, but he was grinning.

She didn't give him a chance to finish his sentence.

Xxxxxxxxxx

The first thing Shiki noticed upon getting to the apartment was that it was very quiet. Which, to her, was not unusual, Ryuuko having a habit of zoning out with his headphones, or camping on the computer for hours at a time. This seemed unusual, however, considering the second thing she noticed.

They had a guest.

She could tell it was Ayano, because she recognized the bag sitting on their couch, The girl had been by a few times in the last couple of days, so Shiki had begun to suspect something. Then again, Ryuuko had told her she was taken, and he tended not to lie about these things. So she poked her head around the apartment, first the kitchen, where she saw a couple of sodas collecting water droplets on the counter. He checked the bathroom, just a quick knock, and peeked her head in, and didn't see anyone. So she checked the balcony. No such luck.

So, the only places left in the apartment were her room, which she knew he wouldn't go into, under penalty of death and other things unmentionable. And his room. _Let's see. He has a girl over. They are both, by default, in his room. And it's quiet. Ryuuko, you little dog, _she thought to herself, and mulled over her options. She could burst into the room, but she might see something she didn't want to. She could just plain knock, but then they'd no someone's here, and she wouldn't get any answers. So, she went with option three.

Leaning softly against the door, she pressed her ear to the woodwork, to check for voices. She didn't hear anything, save for the occasional rustle. She knew his door was right next to his bed, so all she'd have to do was crack it open an inch, and she'd be able to see if they were doing anything… user friendly.

Creaking the door open just a little bit, she made sure to turn the knob as slowly as she could, and pressed her eye against the small space between door and frame. Soon enough, she got a good view of his bed.

With Ryuuko being pinned to the wall, if very gently, by Ayano, the two of them kissing intensely. They weren't even making noise, at least, not much, but they were very focused on their activities. At that point, Shiki got a wonderful idea. She took an aggressive step into the room, and barked at him in a voice filled with false rage "Hey, oi! Whaddya think your doing, macking around with some chick while I'm looking for work? Why I ought to-" THOK! Her false distress was cut short by something small and speedy attaching itself to her forehead.

"You really should hide your dart guns better," her brother quipped, as her eyes crossed towards her forehead, getting a slight view of the yellow foam projectile. She glared at him, and saw him grinning happily, if a little dazed. "And you're too predictable. Barging into my room like that? With bad acting?"

"Hey, I thought I was doing pretty good," she snapped, tearing the dart of her forehead. "Geez, these things really are annoying, huh? Anyway," she glanced at Ayano, who seemed a bit flushed. "I thought you were dating what's-his-name? That guy with the face.

"Well…" she started slowly, dipping her head in embarrassment.

"Listen, Shiki, can you not mention this? To, like, anyone? It kinda just… happened, ok?"

Shiki raised an eyebrow, but had enough experience with relationships to know that these kinds of situations needed to be handled with care. "Alright, ok. I'll keep my nose out of this one. But be careful. I know you've been on the bad end of a love triangle before, so be careful about this other guy. Especially if he's someone you know," she wagged a finger at him, and he dipped his head. "Now, I'll leave you two kiddies to the joys of teenager Dom, I have to go fill out some paperwork for my new job."

"A job, really?" Ryuuko asked, doubt obvious in his tone.

"Yeah, yeah. I know. The ever-present mooch finally working for a living, whatever. Anyway, it's part-time, so don't get your hopes up."

Her younger brother let out a sigh. "Well, it's better than nothing. Just let me know if you need help with some of those big legal words. Like signature-" His snide comments were cut short by a pillow to the face, at which point Shiki stepped out of the room.

"Geek."

Xxxxxxxxxx

"You two seem to have a healthy relationship," Ayano giggled, as Ryuuko peeled pillow off his face. "Is it like that with your brother?"

Ryuuko cocked an eyebrow. "Barely. He and I get along fine, as long as we're not in the same house more than a few hours. It's been like that for awhile. I mean, things have been good since he went overseas, but I haven't even said hi to him since he's come back on vacation. Although I'm beginning to suspect he's back for good."

"So what happened?" the orange-haired girl asked, shuffling around so that she was sitting next to Ryuuko, instead of half on top of him.

Another sigh. It seemed to Ryuuko that he had a lot of reason to sigh these days. He was starting to wonder if he was getting early wrinkles. "Shiki's right, I do have some experience being on the bad end of a love triangle. See, a couple of years before he left, I must have been what, fourteen? He started dating this girl about his, maybe a year younger. I think she was 17 at the time. Anyway, they were doing pretty well, and she started coming over a lot. I remember it being just a summer thing, because she didn't live in Hokkaido. I have no idea where she was from. But anyway, a few weeks into their relationship, I don't know why, but we were both at the dojo, and for some reason, it was just us. I think he went to run an errand, and left her there to hang out or something. But we talked for awhile, and it was kind of nice. No, no, we didn't make out or anything," he answered quickly, to the expression on her face. "Not that time. But she started coming around more and more, sometimes with him, sometimes just to visit the dojo. That's when I started paying more attention to her. She was really nice, a little crass, but a generally helpful person. And smart, too. I think it was the summer before she was supposed to go to college, and she was on some kind of vacation or something. Anyway, a week or two into July, she'd come by to just say hi to the people at the dojo, except I was the only one there."

"I'm going to take a guess and say this is where the 'one thing led to another' comes in?" Ayano smiled, but he could tell it was more of a smirk.

"Yeah. Is there really no better way to say that, though? Whatever. Anyway, we started talking quite a bit, and I don't remember who kissed who first, but I remember it wasn't just that one time. I don't remember if they were having problems in their relationship; yeah, some great storyteller I am. I can't remember half of it," he added sarcastically.

"Well?" she urged him. She seemed into the tale.

"Yeah. It lasted a week or two, and then my brother caught us. Came home early one day or something. That I remember pretty well. He was more than a little pissed off. Practically tore me apart. I think I still have a scar. But aside from that, I don't think I saw her afterwards, except once, right before she went home. She gave me this little goodbye speech, and I remember most of it, but I won't bother you with the verbatim. It basically ran along the lines of, 'We had fun, but I don't think it could have turned into anything serious. Maybe if we were both a little older,' kind of thing," he paused, and cricked his neck. "I spent a good bit of time brooding over it, and I think so did my brother. We didn't talk for awhile. But I decided not to worry about it, especially after everyone in the dojo and their dog pave me either a lecture or a pep talk on the subject. And almost all of them equivocated to 'There will be other girls.'" He groaned, and flopped onto his back. "I just hope I don't pt you through that kind of stress with this. I don't know, maybe we should just make it a one-time thing. Just something that happened." He gave a low growl, and flopped onto his stomach, then, propped himself up on a pillow. "I have no idea. What do you want to do?"

"I think if I spend any more time here, my family's going to get suspicious," she answered.

"Yeah, probably. It is getting kinda late. I'd offer to walk you to the door, but just the amounts of moving around I've done so far are killing me."

Ayano stood up, and flattened out her skirt. "Well, either way, maybe it would be a good idea if I stopped dropping by. I'll find someone else to swing your homework by. Who knows, maybe, by the time you get back to school, we'll have an answer."

Ryuuko shrugged into his blanket. "Maybe."

Xxxxxxxxxx

As it turned out, not having Ayano come by every afternoon left Ryuuko felling a little different.

Mainly, he was bored out of his mind. Ayano had asked Minami and Yutaka to swing his homework by, since they dropped in anyways. And Patricia poked her head in every couple of days, but Ryuuko was beginning to feel more and more uneasy around her. She was hinting kind of heavily that she wanted to go out with him, but he didn't want to make a decision until he had answered his questions with Ayano.

This came to a very serious discussion one afternoon, the Friday before he was due back in school. Patricia and Shiki were helping him celebrate getting his cast off, with Minami and Yutaka's help, by having a small movie party in the apartment. They'd decided to go with a couple of comedies about people in hospitals, just for ambiance, and Shiki had gone to the supermarket for some snacks. Not difficult, since that's where her part-time job was. Ryuuko kept taking jabs at her about seeing her in a grocery uniform.

"But don't you know, Ryuukun? All girls in Japan should wear uniforms! It's one of the pillars of moe!" Patricia exclaimed. She had settled into a bean bag chair, as having her on the couch made it difficult to seat more than one person; she tended to gesture dramatically when she laughed. As it was, Yutaka and Minami had taken the couch. They weren't paying much attention to the movie.

"Yeah, but I don't have any of that older-sister moe going. Especially since she bats for your team," he explained.

"I'm sitting right here, you know," Shiki growled, but she was smiling. T was a good afternoon for jokes.

"You know, I could always put on a uniform for you. I could do it every day if you asked me," Patricia cooed, leaning towards Ryuuko. Which wasn't very effective, as she soon face-planted out of her chair.

Most of the crowd laughed at that. Minami just kind of chuckled. "I appreciate the offer, Patricia, but you know where I am in that scenario," he stated simply, and turned his attention back to the movie. Just in time to see someone walk into a room filled to the ceiling with balloons. "Aha, that's awesome! I've so got to do that to someone!"

"Oh, come on," she added, recovering from her fall, and pulling herself to her knees. "You've had plenty of time to think about it, it's just a few simple words," she kept her voice low and cute, just like she knew he liked it.

"It's not as simple as you make it sound. There's still a lot to think about. It's only been maybe two month's, we're just getting into June. Besides, it's not just you and me that will be affected by this decision," he told her. _For maybe the hundredth time_, he thought to himself.

"Who? Hiyorin? She'll back off if I ask her too, she knows how I feel. And I can deal with Kou," she added offhandedly.

It sounded kind of menacing to him. "Look, can we please watch the movie? This isn't a conversation I want to have right now. _Especially_ right now."

"Well, when then? And what do you mean, right now? Don't tell me, someone else popped up into the game in the last two weeks? You can't go after every girl at once, Ryuuko. You'd be safer with a sure thing."

"Again, it's-"

"Not that easy, yeah I got that. So when is it going to get easy? Huh? After you've exhausted every other option? Am I just a fallback, now? I know you liked Konata, and now that she and Kagami are a pair, you're looking for someone else to settle with?"

Ryuuko could feel a vein throb in his temple. "So why do you automatically assume that you're the best choice?" he asked quietly, just loud enough for her to hear. His voice was steady, but tense. "That you can just push every one else aside and make my decision for me? And how do you know I haven't made my decision already? That I'm not waiting for the right moment to pull off something 'amazing'? Isn't that the way you'd want it? Some big show, that puts you in the center?"

"So you think I'm just being selfish, now? What about you? Making everyone wait for your 'grand decision' while you sit back and watch other people do the work and worshipping for you?" she wasn't bothering to lower her voice. In fact, it was getting a bit louder. The other girls seemed a bit uneasy. Shiki had actually left the room.

"It's not like I'm not doing anything about it. But I've had some bad luck with relationships, I just want to be sure that my next one isn't going to be a mistake," he tried softening his voice, and making himself look apologetic. Maybe if he showed some remorse for being rude, she'd calm down.

It didn't work. "Oh, so you think dating me would be a mistake, would it?"

"That's not what I said, look, Patty-chan, I'm sorry I was crass, but-"

"You know what? No! I'm not going to sit here and listen to you be all apologetic! I'm going home!" And with that, she gathered up her things, and stormed out. Her slamming the door on the way out was made all the more dramatic by her slamming the door into her apartment. Soon after, they heard a soft click from the direction of Shiki's room.

"Is it safe to come out now?" Shiki asked, more out of exasperation than concern.

Ryuuko looked over to The two girls on the couch, who, thus far, had been entirely silent. "What do you think, girls? Should we call it a night?"

Yutaka glanced at Minami, and basically repeated the question. "Minami, do you want to stay? I don't know if we should, seeing as how Patty-chan is right next door…"

"It's up to you," the taller girl answered simply.

"It's not going to bother me if you two go home, it's not exactly a positive environment anymore. But you're welcome to stay. We could order in," he offered.

The two seemed to think carefully on this. "Well, I guess it wouldn't be so bad," Yutaka concluded, after some silence. "Ok, but let's watch something different?"

Ryuuko nodded. "Not a bad idea. Shiki, what do you want to eat?"

The older girl shrugged. "I don't really care. I don't eat much."

"Well, what do you want to watch?"

Shiki mused for a little while. "Who's up for some Tim Burton?"

The looks she got told her it was not a good idea.

Xxxxxxxxxx

Saturday was normally a very happy day for Ryuuko. It was the end of a school week, a day in which he usually didn't have to do anything. He could just kind of hang out. But that's all he had been doing all week. Shiki was at work for the whole day, so he didn't really have someone to hang out with. Konata and Kagami had made plans to go to Gamer's after Konata got back from work, and Patty was at work as well.

Which was just as well, she didn't show any inclination to make up. He thought about calling Hiyorin, but the mangaka was nothing if not fiercely loyal, and he had a feeling that Patricia had already called her about their argument. He didn't want to put his friend in that position, anyway. He didn't really know anyone else, and had been out of the Animation Club's loop for a couple of weeks, to the point where he didn't even know what they were working on. He and Ayano had already decided to hold off talking until Monday, and he didn't have Misao's number. But he was pretty sure they wouldn't have enough in common to hold much of a conversation anyway. He had no idea what Miyuki and Tsukasa were doing, and utaka and Minami had been over the day before.

He was sunk. "Geez, who can I talk to about all of this crap if everyone's busy? It's not like I can just up and walk around somewhere. My cast just came off, and I'm just getting my leg back in order." Than an idea struck him, as he walked past the kitchen counter, where his cell phone was lying there, doing nothing. Except blinking at him.

"A voicemail? I guess it must have been on vibrate. Who's it from?" He clicked it open. "Bro? What's he calling about?" Ryuko mulled it over for a little while, then punched in a few keys, and listened to his brother's message.

"Hey, Little Komodo, what's up? I know we don't talk much. Did you get the last package I sent? I just wanted to check in, things at home are just as weird as ever. I guess I'll… yeah. Bye." BEEP. Ryuuko glanced at the phone. Had he really been so out of touch with his brother? After all this time? The realiztion that he wasn't the only one with problems inspired him, so he hit the callback button.

It rang a few times, then, "Hello?"

"Hey, Koji?"

"Little Komodo! What's up?" the older boy sounded excited to hear him.

"Not much. Hey, thanks for that last package. I got your message, sorry I haven't called in awhile-"

"No, no, it's cool! So, Shiki tells me you've got some girly problems, huh?"

"Yeah, I can't really seem to stay out of trouble when it comes to women, huh?"

"Preaching to the choir, kid. So, tell me about it. Let ol' big brother Koji take care of everything."

"Are you sure? I mean, we don't have a great track record of-"

"Yeah, I know. But it's been a few years! It's not like you're doing it again, right?"

_Why is it, whenever you don't want someone to know something, they guess it almost right away? _Ryuuko mused. "Y-yeah. Mostly, it's an argument I had with my neighbor yesterday," Ryuuko started. Soon, though, he found he was talking about everything. His introduction in school, how he met his friends, Mr. Takasuki, the Animation Research Club, Patricia, everything short of Ayano. He didn't think his brother would approve of him repeating his mistakes. Even if it didn't prove to be a mistake this time.

"So it sounds like you have a lot of options, and none of them are really the safe route, huh?" Koji laughed. "This foreigner chick sounds like a real treat. At least you both speak English as a first language."

Ryuuko rolled his eyes. Leave it to your older siblings to bog down seriousness with sarcasm. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, do you have a suggestion? Cause I kind of know who I'm into, but it's a complicated situation."

"No, wait, let me guess. She has a boyfriend?" he could hear the laughter in Koji's voice. But he knew it was a serious guess.

"Actually, kinda yeah. But it's not the same situation we were in. It's… hell, I don't know. But I know I'll have an answer on Monday, that much we've agreed on," he sighed.

There was a slight pause, then a sigh on the other end of the line. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You've always had this thing with girls. I'll never understand it. I guess that's why you can't stay out of trouble. Just make sure to be safe about this, ok? If she says nothing's going to happen, then don't go pressing on it. Just let it be. But hey, if she picks you over him, I suggest strongly that you say 'To hell with everyone else-'"

"'What I want is right here,'" Ryuuko finished for him. It was one of the few things they had between them, something that had driven them into some amazing things. And scary situations. "You know, you're right. If it works with this girl, if she tells me that she wants me, and not this homophobic what's-his-face, then I'm just going to take it as is."

"Atta boy. But I gotta tell you, I'm a little disappointed."

"Why's that?"

"An entire night with over a dozen pretty girls in a house in the woods, and you don't make a pass? Not your shining moment."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. At least I don't have to fly overseas to score," he grinned. All in good fun.

"Ouch. Not cool, man," but he was laughing. "Listen. I'm headed back a week from Monday, whether I want to or not. I'll tell you the details later, but how about we spend next weekend together? Who knows, if this girl agrees with you, you can bring her with," Koji offered.

"You know what? Yeah. Yeah, that sounds good. I'll talk to you then," Ryuuko added.

"See you later."

"And Koji?"

"Hm?"

"…I'm sorry about Inori."

"…Hey, three years is better than nothing. Thanks, bro."

Xxxxxxxxxx

Ryuuko's return to school wasn't quite what he expected. Yeah, there were a few girls who were more than excited to see him. A few guys he recognized from his 'fight' stopped to apologize, even a very begrudging Shuto. After a couple nudges in the back and a good solid shove, of course. Apparently, the bald-headed boy had spent the last two weeks suspended, so it all kind of worked out.

But mostly, Ryuuko's reappearance was greeted with some whispers, behind-the-hand talk, and a few curious looks. It wasn't really malicious, more like… curiosity. Like finding something new in your parent's room, but you know you shouldn't ask them about it. He caught a few phrases here and there, but they were mostly stuff he already knew, or generic phrasings.

"…Is he that guy?

"I heard that one kid broke his leg…"

"…didn't even fight back…"

"…had a fight with that first year, what's her name? Patricia?"

That last one made him groan wearily, and he trudged himself to the lockers, where he traded his shoes. He had just slipped his second one on when he heard another conversation start up on the other side of the locker bank that got his attention.

"Hey, you know that girl in 3-B?"

"Minegeshi? The one that was all moody last Thursday?"

"I heard she got into a big fight with her boyfriend. Apparently, she found someone else."

"Really? Who?"

"I have no idea. But I heard her talking to him after school on Friday. She was really upset with him."

"Isn't that Kusakabe's older brother?"

"Yeah. He was getting all upset about her hanging out with those two gay girls in third year. Kagami and that midget whatever."

"Izumi-san, right? She's kinda cool. A little loud."

"Yeah, uh-huh, ok. Anyways, they got into this huge fight, and he's all 'Why are you so upset with me? I thought we had the same opinion!' And she's like, 'Just because we're dating doesn't mean I have to agree with everything you say!' So he goes, 'Yeah, sure! You're just on about it because you ARE a lesbian!'"

"No way!"

"Totally. Then she goes, 'You can't judge me!' or something like that. I don't remember the rest, but he ended it with something like, 'Good luck finding another guy after this!' and, get this, she tells him, 'I already have!' so then-"

But Ryuuko didn't find out what had happened afterwards, because he'd grabbed up his bag, and tore like hell out of the room. He heard a faint yell as he whipped up the stairs, but didn't stop to think about it. Although his mind was racing. _SO she picked me? She picked me. At the end of the day, she picked me… I gotta find her._

_So he tore up the stairs, passing a few people on the way. He charged past Tsukasa and Miyuki, who were walking up the stairs together. They both tried jumping into each other's arms at the same time, and crashed into each other._

He almost ran over Konata, who had just reached the top of the stairs, and Kagami, who was stamping her foot, waiting for the blue-haired otaku. "Sorry girls, but I gotta-"

Kagami just waved him off. "She told me everything, go, go! She's in our classroom!"

A swell of appreciation surged in his chest, and he ran off again with a "Thank you!"

"What was that about?" Konata asked.

Kagami thought about it, then said, "If you want a real-life event scene, we better follow him. C'mon!"

"I knew it!" Konata yelled. "You really are my otaku girlfriend!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, hurry up!"

But Ryuuko didn't hear any of this, he had charged right through, barreling between Misao and Ms. Kuroi, who stopped to yell at him, but he was already long gone. Followed almost immediately by the two girls.

Then he reached it. The door to class 3-B. He didn't know what he'd say when he opened it, but, as he figured, he was pretty good at winging that kind of thing. So he threw the door open, and at first, started to freak out, because he didn't see her. Or, actually, didn't recognize her. Until she took a step towards him. And he figured out why he didn't pick up on her right away: she had taken out her hair band, and was staring at him from under her bangs, which fell mostly over one eye, in what could only be described as a blazing look.

Ryuuko had never seen anyone with a blazing look on their face. He'd read about it, sure. But seeing it in person, he got what all the hype was about. It was an expression that said quite simply, 'Mine.'

He didn't disagree. He took maybe a step forward, when she all but rushed at him. He thought of a hundred things to say at once, but only got out "So, you-" Before her lips crashed against his, and he wrapped his arms around her. She returned the favor.

They stayed like that for a little while, then broke apart, all but gasping for air. "You know, that's a really good look for you," he said quietly.

"Shiki said you might like it."

"That girl talks way to much."

"It must be a family thing," Ayano said simply, and once again took the initiative, kissing him fiercely. His head swam for a bit, then he simply gave in. It was good to give in.

Xxxxxxxxxx

Konata and Kagami got to the classrooms just as Ryuuko threw open the door. Konata had just enough time to ask, "What the-" Before Ayano rushed out to meet her now-boyfriend. The blue-haired girl gave her girlfriend an inquisitive look, and Kagami explained everything that Ayano had told her the night before.

"She was a little out of it, but she'd figured out what she wanted. Her boyfriend was a bit of a jackass, even Misao agrees with us. She called me next, complaining that her brother wouldn't stop yelling. But it was funny. Ayano kind of ranted for a bit, then said something I thought was really amusing."

"What's that?" Konata asked. She tore herself away from the spectacle, as Ryuuko and Minegeshi had just started kissing again.

"She said, 'After two months, all those girls really didn't get it. It only took me a few days.'"

"What's that? What's to get?"

Then, as if to answer her question, Ryuuko stepped into the hallway, holding his new girlfriend's hand. "To hell with everyone else, what I want is right here."

Author's Note: Fangirls are great inspiration for writing, don't you think?


	12. Chapter 12

Author's Note: I'd thought about making the last chapter the LAST chapter, but I had a bunch of other things I wanted to do with this story. Plus, I know I left a few questions unanswered, and the only people that can get away with that in any regard are anime writers. Yes, I'm talking to you, Venus Versus Virus!

Chapter 12: Fallout

The rest of the day seemed to float on clouds for Ryuuko. Classes seemed a little easier, he smiled wider, and he felt more productive. At least, it did until he made his way to The Animation Research Club room.

He could tell things weren't going to go very well when he reached the doors, even before he opened them. The room seemed to give off an aura of unease, telling him, "You REALLY don't want to go in there." _I know I don't,_ he thought to himself. _But it's going to be so much worse if I try to avoid it..._ If the ominous sense of foreboding wasn't enough, the door shocking him with static electricity should have been another great sign to leave.

Of course, having already decided on his course of action, with a little help from his classmates, and Ayano, ("You should just get it over with. It's not like they're going to be any happier with you tomorrow."), he ignored it, and slid open the door. The environment in the room was about what he expected. A few people looked pleased to see him, a few appeared more than a little upset with him, and, as soon as he opened the door, Patricia had simply gotten out of her seat and walked to the other side of the room.

Kou, however, wasted no time getting in his face. "You've been gone two weeks! TWO WEEKS! Do you have any idea how far behind we are on this doujin? We DO have a deadline, after all!"

This was, by far, NOT the first thing Ryuuko expected to hear when he got back. His surprise must have shown, because Kou took it as an opening. "I know, I know, you had your leg broken while playing the stubborn nonviolent hero. We're all proud of you. Two weeks, Ryuosen!"

He caught his breath this time. "Ok, ok. So what do you need me for? I thought I was just the guy that posed for shots."

"Did you forget we're also doing a video accompaniment to one of the scenes?" The blonde pointed a finger in his face.

"Honestly? Yes. Speaking of which, are we doing a live scene? Or something with an animation editor?"

It was Hiyorin's turn to speak up. "Animated. I've been trying to learn Flash over the last couple of weeks, but it hasn't been playing nice. I think I finally have the hang of it, but drawing with a computer is such a pain in the ass."

Ryuuko nodded. "I can imagine. So, um, does this mean you're not upset with me about..." he shuffled his feat as his sentence trailed off, but she just smiled and shook her head.

"Don't worry, we're fine. Although, I don't think this is the best place to talk about it. Anyway, what we need _you_ to do is voice overs. You have recording equipment, right?"

"Yeah, not great stuff, but I can bring it in if you want. So, since it's two male leads, who's playing the other guy?"

Hiyori blushed a little, and kind of swayed. Then she went back to drawing. Furiously.

Kou just shook her head. "I swear, even little things set her off lately. She's been in a rare mood since you guys came back from that weekend thing. I wonder what happened to her."

Ryuuko had a pretty good idea. Something involving two female first years who were currently dating. And who had already inspired a plethora of dirty thoughts in the mangaka's imagination. Although, if Kou didn't know, it was a safe bet that he shouldn't be the one to tell her. "No idea. So, do we have a script or something? Casting? I can't be the only person in this video, right?"

The club president nodded in agreement. "Originally, it was going to be you, Hiyori, Martin-san-"

There came a loud "Hmph" from the corner of the room.

"-me, and we were going to get my older brother to play the other male role. Most of the manga is drawn up, and we've found a great way to include a few different artists from our club, so it should be a great final project. Even if the video doesn't work, it's a great showcase. I just wish we didn't have to lower the rating for some of the scenes..."

Ryuuko blushed slightly at that. He was more than a little grateful that he didn't have to pose for those panels. He opened his mouth to ask a few more questions, when one of the younger members of the club came up to him.

"Um, Ryuuko-sempai? Is it true that... um... do you really have a girlfriend now?"

_Aw, geez. _"Yeah, I do. It kind of took me by surprise, but I'm think I'm going to be pretty happy with her." He wasn't sure if he should apologize or not, but before he could come up with anything to say, there was yet another disturbance from Patricia's corner. Namely, her slamming her chair back, and storming out of the room. After the room had gone quiet again, he sighed. "I was afraid that was going to happen. She's not going to give me a chance to talk, is she?"

Hiyori finally looked up, tissues covering her latest nosebleed. "I wouldn't worry about it too much. She's not very good at holding a grudge."

"So what about the other girls? I know Yutaka-san and Minami-san probably don't care who I'm dating, but are they upset about... well, they were there when Patty-chan and I had our argument, and I just-"

The younger girl interrupted him by holding up a hand. "Again, don't worry about it. She's actually been getting on a few people's nerves lately. When she called me after you two had your argument, I thought it would be a good idea to play Devil's Advocate. Apparently, she's a little miffed at me for not taking her side. And she's upset at Minami-chan and Yu-chan for not leaving when she did. Something about taking sides."

"Is she always this dramatic? I've known her for a little while, and we've been neighbors for a couple of months, but I don't think I've seen her like this before." Ryuuko scratched his head. _Was it just a girl thing?_ He thought, then shook it off. If that was true, there would be a lot more females upset with him right now.

Hiyori gave him a look, then stood up, and motioned for him to follow her. "This isn't a conversation to be had in a crowded room."

Ryuuko raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he followed her into an unoccupied classroom nearby. Once he'd closed the door behind him, Hiyori took a seat, and motioned for him to do the same. "You have to understand, Ryuuko, Patty-chan was really set on you. She moved to Japan for the exchange program purely because she's an otaku. She has a very fantasized view of life here, and I'm more than willing to bet that she expected everything to turn out for her like it would in her favorite romance animes. She seemed to cool down a little after your fight, but when she heard that you'd started going out with Ayano almost instantly after getting back from your leave? I think she got a very large dose of reality that she wasn't ready for. I don't want it to sound like we're not still friends with her, but she's being pretty emotional right now. She seems to blame you for destroying her fairy tale."

The older teen blinked a few times, rolling around the information in his head. He knew that women tended to be very devoted to their fantasies, especially if there was a chance they might come true. "Well, what can I do about it? I can't really go back and undo everything. I don't get savepoints, here."

She nodded. "I know, and you've made your choice. I'd kind of given up on the whole thing after Patty-chan kissed you during truth or dare. Honestly, I was kind of swept away by the whole mysterious transfer student hero-to-the-otakus thing."

"So were a few people."

"Mm. Exactly. That's a big reason alot of people were so upset after that rumor started going around. I mean, when you punched that teacher out, most people just thought you were going to be a violent delinquent wh caused trouble everywhere he went. And then Sakura came out with her side of the story, and you were a hero again, except now, it was to all the girls, not just the otakus and outsiders. You had quite a bit of fanbase at that point. There aren't very many people in this school that make a very big impression. It's kind of a quiet place, compared to most schools. We don't even really have a major demographic, aside from being a prep-school. So someone who showed up and made a really big commotion was something very different. Alot of people latched onto that."

"I'm guessing there's more to this, isn't there?" Ryuuko leaned back in his chair, and blew a strand of hair out of his face.

"Absolutely. And the only reason I'm the one telling you all this is that alot of the older students you hang out with don't really know about issues in our club, or how alot of the younger students see the issue. But anyway, after the weekend trip to that house in the woods, which, by the way, I did have alot of fun there, even if it was just the people I see all the time, and a few new faces. After that trip, though, almost all of the student body had heard about it, especially since one of the biggest gossips in the school was rejected an invitation."

"Sakura again?"

"Seeing a pattern? She's also kind of a key point in all this. After you took out the teacher that had made her life hell, she started to idolize you, like a lot of girls did. But you straight shot her down, and she was more than a little upset. So she decided to take the first opportunity she could in ruining the spotlight for you. Of course, that backfired, thanks to you being bullheaded, and wanting to stay out of trouble. Most guys would have taken the first chance to fight after the day you had, from what I heard from everyone else. So, instead of being the wimpy kid who didn't throw a punch, you came out as this bulwark hero. Of course, the Animation Research club, and our sempais, _may_ have had something to do with it."

"I thought so. So, what, this whole time, I've only been popular because I'm playing out an image? Was there anyone here that was attracted to me for reasons _other_ than embellished fame and glory stories?"

Hiyori giggled a little. "Ayano-sempai, from what I hear."

Ryuuko scratched his head. "Ok, yeah, I'll give you that one. Especially since, after thinking about it all weekend, that's one of the big reasons I decided to go with her. I mean, we only really spent time together over the last few days, or week or so, but I felt more of a connection there than I had with any of you guys. No offense."

"None taken. Honestly, I just kind of saw you as a sempai who did some really cool stuff. But it sounds like you know what you're getting into, even if you're just now seeing the negative parts of your decisions."

"Yeah, I kind of thought that once I got a girlfriend, things would just be easier all around, you know? I wouldn't have to spend all of my time worrying about my decision anymore. I wouldn't feel like I'm stringing you guys along. I wouldn't have to take advice from Shiki..."

That got another chuckle out of her. "I heard about that. Maybe you should try doing things your own way? Everything seems to be happening _to you, _doesn't it? Well, I don't know if there's much more I can do to help patch things up with Patty-chan, I think you're going to have to give her time. After awhile, I think the other girls might realize that they were just interested in an image, and kind of dwindle away."

"I sure hope so. I'm tired of finding room in my bag for all those letters. Why do guys think getting a whole bunch of those is a good thing? It's such a pain in the arsenal."

Hiyori shrugged. "It's romantic and old-fashioned. Of course, most of the guys that wish they would get a whole bunch have never received any. It sound like it could be really awkward.

"No doubt. Well, OK. Let's get back to club, before Kou has an aneurism."

xxxxxxxxxx

The next few days seemed to kind of drift by. Quiet breakfast, quiet walks to school, slow classes, lunches with Ayano that seemed to drift by in a peaceful haze. Except one lunch, in the middle of the week, when the conversation turned to something that Ryuuko realized he actually needed to pay attention to.

"Say again?"

Ayano raised her eyebrows. "Hm? Weren't you listening?"

_Think quick, you putz._ "Sorry, I was kind of blissing out to the sound of your voice."

Ayano lowered one eyebrow. "I'm going to let that slide, mostly because that was a very romantic diversion. Anyway, I was asking you if you had any plans for this weekend?"

A small bell started to go off in Ryuuko's head. "Weekend, weekend... OH! Yeah, I do! The day after... well, last Saturday, my older brother called."

Up went the other eyebrow again. Ryuuko's only thought was _make it dance._ But he decided to ignore that thought, instead giving her the details on his conversation with his older brother, and their plans to meet up again.

"So, are you two okay now?" Her voice lilted a little in concern.

"As good as we can be, for now. It's kind of hard to put three years of separation aside in a few minutes, but I think he wants to see this thing behind us as much as I do."

"Well, the reason I asked is because midterms are coming up, so Hiiragi-chan has suggested a study group at her house this weekend. She's invited her friends from your class, me, and Misao. She told me to ask you myself, because I'd most likely see you first."

Ryuuko mulled this over. "Maybe, what days?"

Ayano tilted her head a little, thinking. "I believe it's this Friday, into Saturday morning. But we should double check, just to make sure."

Ryuuko rolled over a little, then sat up, leaning against the fence Ayano was propped against. "I guess that could work. Yeah. I'll call Koji, and have him come over in the afternoon on Saturday, to spend the night, and when we get done with the study group, you can swing by my place, and I can probably bribe Shiki into giving you a ride home that night. My brother's wanting to meet you. He's a little... overprotective when it comes to my romantic life."

"He wants to make sure you're dating a decent girl?" she chuckled as she laughed, and brushed her hair behind her ear. She had cut her bangs a fraction, and kept them mostly loose around her face. She had abandoned the headband entirely, but the rest of her hairstyle was pretty much the same. He liked it.

"He wants to make sure the girls I date know what they're in for. My family's crazy. In the bad anime-style overdo-everything way."

She laughed out loud at that. "Do I want to meet these people at all, Ryuuko?"

"It might involve a free trip to Hokkaido."

She faked being deep in thought. "Done. But not for awhile, yet."

"Oh, god no. Hey, how much time do we have left before class?"

Ayano glanced at her watch, then leaned over Ryuuko. "Enough time to do this."

"Do wha-oh" was all he got out, before her lips met his, and he went back to blissing out.

xxxxxxx

The rest of the week seemed to travel like the first half, except with more talking, more focusing, and less time in the club. According to Kou, after he provided the voiced pieces for the video, he really didn't need to do much for their culture fest project.

And yet again, it was the weekend. Ryuuko's luck seemed to be gaining speed again, as his plans for the weekend were laid out almost perfectly. Study at Kagami's till tomorrow morning, then go home, wait for Koji, and hang out until Ayano had to go home. Then spend the entirety of Sunday with his family.

SHiki had driven him and Ayano after school, and left to cover a night shift at work, after dropping them off at the Hiiragi residence. "Wow, kind of a nice place." Ryuuko commented softly. "Makes sense, I hear they have a big family."

Ayano nodded. "Four sisters, and their parents. I've heard stories. I've even been present for some of them." she grinned, pressing the doorbell. After a few seconds, Tsukasa opened the door.

"Oh, Ayano-san, Ryuukun, welcome! Sis, Minegeshi-san and Ryuuko-kun are here!" the younger twin announced over her shoulder. A fw seconds later, the door opened the rest of the way, and Kagami stood staring out at them.

"Well don't leave them out on the porch, Tsukasa! Invite them in!" Kagami grumbled, waving her two guests into the household. "Come on in, you guys. We've got snacks, and my sisters said they'd help us study."

"Awesome," Ryuuko commented, taking off his shoes, and holding out a small bag. "We brought snacks, too!"

Ayano coughed slightly.

"Ok, Ayano baked cookies, and I bought some soda. Cooking is not one of the many art forms I practice."

Ayano just smiled.

Kagami shrugged. "Might as well. I'd hate to see what she does to you if you try to step on her territory."

From the back bedroom, a rather loud, tomboyish voice declared, "Yeah! Ayano's temper can get crazy-scary! You better watch out, Ryuosen!"

"Nice to see you, too, Kusakabe," he shouted back, smiling. "So, when do we get to meet these sisters? I keep hearing about them, and I have yet to see-"

But his sentence was cut off, as a girl in brown hair stepped into the hall, fanning herself with her hand. "Yeah, yeah, we're here. Don't make a big deal out of it, we just have nothing better to do." Matsuri looked up to see Ryuuko staring, wide-eyed, right over her shoulder. Because she wasn't why he had stopped talking. The girl who walked in behind her was.

As tall as Kagami, with shorter hair in a deeper shade of purple, Inori Hiiragi stepped out, and waved a small hello. Then, she caught sight of what Matsuri was staring at, and froze.

Ayano was the first to cut the silence. "Um, Ryuuko, are you ok?"

The black-haired teen blinked, and shook his head vehemently. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I just totally spaced out for a second. Must be low blood sugar, can you hand me one of those sodas, Hiiragi?"

Kagami reached into the bag to hand him a drink, but Ayano raised a hand to stop her. "Ryuuko, what's up? And don't give me some cheap one-liner to distract me."

"Really, Ayano, I'm fine. I swear. Goose walked over my grave, that's all," he assured her, giving her a small smile.

She looked hesitant, but decided to drop it. "Ok, then."

Tsukasa, who had been fidgeting uncomfortably for a few seconds, said, "Why don't we sit down and start? I'll bring out those snacks and stuff. I'm not going to be much help otherwise."

Kagami gave a weak shrug and sigh combo, and trodded off to her room. "I'll see if I can pry Kusakabe from the PlayStation."

The rest kind of stood there for a little bit, before Matsuri piped up, "Oh, duh! I haven't introduced myself! I'm Matsuri Hiiragi!" she proclaimed, and Ryuuko reached out to shake her hand.

"Ryuuko Ryuosen, just call me Ryuuko," he added, and turned to the older sister, who smiled weakly.

"Hello. I'm Inori Hiiragi," she, too, shook Ryuuko's hand.

Once Kagami had successfully dragged Misao away from the TV, they sat around the living room table, and cracked open a few books. At first, studying was proving to be a very successfull task.

Until, in a very Konata-like fashion, Misao slumped against the table. "I'm so bored! None of this information is getting through! Why do I have to study now? I can just cram for the test the night before, and I'll do fine!"

"Misao, it's only been half an hour! Are you really that lacking in discipline?" Kagami huffed. She rubbed one temple, and added, "You know, if you can't learn to study, it doesn't matter where your sports scolarship takes you, you'll still drop out. Colleges expect you to maintain a specific GPA, you know."

"Yeah, but that's lightyears away!"

"It's less than a year from now!" argued the older twin, but she gave up, exasperated. "Oh, alright, fine. Just go in my room and play a game or something. Come back out when you feel rested."

Misao jumped up excitedly, and ran for the back of the house. "We're never going to see her again, are we?" Ryuuko asked, grinning in spite of himself.

Both Ayano and Kagami shook their heads, while Tsukasa gave a nervous giggle. And so, they returned to studying.

Every once in awhile, Tsukasa would turn to one of them and ask, "Could you explain this to me, please?" At first, it was ok, because they were there to help each other. Ryuuko found it a little endearing, until about the third time she turned to ask him.

"Um, Tsukasa?" he asked politely, trying to settle a twitch in his right temple through sheer force of will. "Wouldn't it be easier to sudy at a level you're familiar with, and work your way up?"

The younger twin nodded. "Yes, that's what Matsuri-oneechan suggested, so I started on last year's coursework, but..."

A large sigh was heaved around the rest of the table. Ryuuko just raised an eyebrow at the other twin. She gave a nod akin to 'Yes, it's always like this.'

So, Ryuuko just answered what he could, and focused on what work he had. After a few minutes, however, he was broken out of his reverie by a soft cough.

He looked uo, to try to determine where it came from, but noone looked up in response. So he ignored it. Until it happened again. A bit louder. He looked up once more, and saw a sideways glance or two, but no other cough-related gestures. So he set it in the back of his mind. SO much so, that the next time the cough made itself heard, he completely ignored it, until-

"Ryuuko!" Kagami snapped at him.

He was so startled he toppled backwards. "What, what? Did I fall asleep? What time is it?"

"No, you didn't fall asleep, it's that infernal tapping! I don't even care what song it is, just knock it off!"

Ryuuko glanced around himself quickly to figure out what she was talking about, and noticed, quite surprisedly, that his foot was indeed shaking to some rhythm or another. He vaguely recognized it as a song by Scandal, before he returned to a seating position, and tucked his feet under his legs. "Sorry, I never notice when I'm doing that, you know?"

"Well, now that your aware, can you please try not to?" Kagami asked agin, this time much more mellow. "Thank you."

"Sure."

Of course, not even two minutes later, did Ryuuko hear the distinct sound of someone humming. THe same song he had been tapping. It was Kagami. And soon, she realized it, too. "Oh, darn it! I can't focus now."

Ayano moved quickly to disarm what could be an uncomfortable situation. "Why don't we all just take a break, hm? I'll see if I can go get Misao back out here."

Kagami nodded. "Sure. I've got to go listen to that song anyway, Or I'll never get it out of my head."

Tsukasa stood up with her. "How about I make some more snacks, ok? We're almost out."

After most of them had left, Matsuri stood up. "If everyone's gonna walk out, I'm going to go take a nap. Wake me when we do something exciting."

And she, too, left the room. Leaving Ryuuko and Inori. The former, trying very hard to stick to his studies, and ignore the older girl who was very blatantly staring at him. It didn't last long. He dropped his pencil, and glanced over at her. "I'm guessing we're going to have to talk about this at some point, right?"

Inori nodded silently, then folded her arms in front of her. "So... how have you been?"

Ryuuko blinked. Not the pening he'd been expecting. "Not bad. Koji's back in town, and we're hanging out tomorrow and Sunday."

She brightened a little at that. "Oh, that's good. Last I heard, you two weren't doing so well. It's good to hear you're speaking again."

"Well, three years is a long time."

"Yes, it is. You know, for the first year or so, a part of me... part of me wanted to wait awhile, and come back. See what kind of person you'd grow into. But I've had a few relationships since then, and honestly, lately, I haven't thought about it much. But I see you're dating Ayano-san, right?"

He didn't respond at first, a little surprised by her revelation, but he shook it off. "Yeah. Only since last weekend, we're just starting out, but... I have a feeling it's going to be a good thing. I'm happy with it."

"That's.. that's god to hear." Sh didn't look very pleased by it. "You know, when Kagami came home a couple months ago, and mentioned this boy she met from Hokkaido, I'd thought it was you. Just for a second, and then I shook it off, because really, how many boys are there in Hokkaido? Probably a couple hundred. But just for that brief second, I thought it would be you. And then, when she said your name, I got kind of excited. Then a little worried. I was scared you wouldn't remember me. Then I realized that you mightnot even know I was here. And when Kagami started talking about how you were looking for a girlfriend, and Konata was helping you, I pretty much figured you'd forgotten about me."

Ryuuko felt almost humbled. "Inori..."

The older girl looked up, and waved a hand at him. "Oh, no no no, nothing like that! I just thought, well, it'd be nice to at least see you again. It's not like I've been dwelling on it, really. I know how I must sound, but it's not like it seems. I just... I was worried about you. Worried that I might have had some kind of affect on you that wasn't healthy. I know I wasn't the best thing to happen to you and your brother, but I thought, at least, that if I saw you again, I could say I'm sorry."

It was Ryuuko's turn to hold up the Hand of Interruption. "Hey, look, Inori, I'm ok. Really. Yeah, I dwelled on it a little, at first. Actually, for that whole freaking year, but still, I let it go. Things were pretty uneasy between Koji and me, but when he left for America, things got a bit easier."

"So, then, why did you leave Hokkaido?"

"Because the dorm was practically flooded with students. It's live-in, remember?"

Inori rested her head in her hand. "Oh, yes, now I do. Oh, it's been awhile, please forgive me. I just... I can't say I don't still care about you, Ryuuko."

The black-haired teen had a sudden urge to scoot backward. "Um, Inori? Is this going somewhere weird?"

She shook her head. "I don't think so. I guess what I'm trying to say is, Ryuuko, that I have missed you, and not all my feelings for you are gone. Oh, but don't think I'd do anything to mess up what you have now! I just, I wouldn't feel right if you were here all night, and I didn't say anything. I haven't seen you in years, I wanted to at least say something. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, I just had to get all of this off my chest. But no, I don't think I'll do anything about it. I think seeing you again is enough that I can forget about it entirely."

Ryuuko blinked for a few times, and for a moment, silence reigned, until he heard a very distinct cough from the doorway. He turned his head slowly to see Ayano, Kagami, Tsukasa and Misao all standing in the hall, watching the two of them. The Hiiragi twins looked as confused as he felt, Misao looked bored, and was trying to push her way through to the kitchen, but Ayano was expressionless.

"Ayano, hey, can I talk to you for a sec-" but she didn't let him finish his sentence, instead, turning around and walking back down the hall, into Kagami's room. The door closed rather loudly.

Ryuuko just led his head fall to the table. "I swear to god, I could have started smoking when I was 2, and girls are going to kill me faster than the cigarettes would have."

Author's Note: Ok, I'm not 100% on this CHapter, But I really, REALLY don't want to rewrite it, and it covers alot of things I wanted covered so...

Please leave reviews. I need to know where I'm at, and where you guys think this should go.


	13. Chapter 13

Author's Note: Yay, dramatic tension. Let's see where it goes, shall we? Because, honestly, as I'm writing this, I have about as much of an idea as you do. So let's-a-go.

Chapter 13: Gambling with Emotions

Ryuuko took a few seconds to grind his head into the table. "Rrraaaggh..." he grumbled. He glanced up after a little while to a sea of mixed expressions, ranging from thoroughly confused to disapproving. He titlet his head back. "Alright, let's have it. Who wants to go first?"

He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Matsuri made a move to enter the conversation, but was cut off by Kagami all but shouting at him. "Inori? My sister? Is there anyone you _don't_ have a romantic connection to? I can't believe this!" Ryuuko opened his mouth to speak, but Kagami held up a hand. "No, don't. I know you probably have some brilliant excuse, like always, but right now I _really_ don't want to hear it!" she finished, and stomped off to join Ayano. He heard the door slam again.

Glancing around, he saw Tsukasa fidgeting uncomfortably, and looking ready to leave the room. Then a thought struck him. "Um, Tsukasa-san, do you have something to say?"

She looked taken aback, and started to excuse herself. He heaved a sigh. "Look, Tsukasa-san, you rarely get a word in edgewise when anything important happens. Why don't you just speak your mind this time? Seriously, it's not healthy to just let yourself get ignored."

The younger twin looked significantly uncomfortable, but gave in, and took a seat at the table again. "Well, I don't really know how to say this, because I'm not very good at these kinds of things, but... well, I'm not really sure I like you."

This took the boy by surprise. "I... what? That's not really what I meant-"

Tsukasa shook her head aggressively. "Oh, not like that! I don't hate you or anything! I just thought that I needed to say that, or what I wanted to say next wouldn't really make sense. It's just that I still don't know you very well. All these times we've hung out, I've never really talked to you... I guess what I mean to say is that I don't have a certain opinion of you. So what I want to say is really just based on what I've seen."

Ryuuko nodded along. "Ok, that makes a bit more sense," he mused, as Matsuri and Misao sat down with them, to sit in on the conversation. "So, what do you have for me?"

The youngest Hiiragi fidgeted a bit, but continued. "It's just that every time you seem to get together in a group with a bunch of girls, you get into trouble, in some way or another. The sleep-over, Martin-san getting angry at you- which I overheard from Kona-chan," she added, seeing the expression on Ryuuko's face. He nodded for her to go on. "And now today. It's just, I was wondering why you don't hang out with guys at all? I know you're friends with that one second-year's older brother, and you have your brother, but I've never heard about you hanging out with any of the male students or anything. I was just thinking that maybe, if you didn't hang out with girls so much, you wouldn't have so many problems. You don't seem to be very good with girls, despite how many of them like you."

This made quite a bit of sense to him, but something still bugged him. "So, um, why did you feel like you needed to say all of that stuff in the beginning?"

Matsuri cut in with a hand-wave. "Oh, that's just how Tsukasa-chan works. She's so worried about how other people see her that she tries to cut off any chances for them to get angry before she says anything that she sees as potentially upsetting. She's the kind of person that will try to rephrase anything she says if it upsets someone."

He gave a small "Ah" of understanding, at smiled. "Well, to be perfectly honest, it's easier for me to relate to girls. Even at the dojo, I spent more time hanging around with the girls and female instructors than the guys. I never wanted to be a martial artist, so instead of hanging around my brother and Kenji-kun, I spent most of my time with the girls that dropped by to pick up their family members, or the female instructors that worked there. Our dojo hasn't always been live-in, so at first, we had a lot of staff changes and stuff, with a bunch of teachers doing different disciplines, but that's a whole different story. Anyways, because of that, there has always been a variety of people for me to hang out with, but any time I tried to hang out with guys, they'd challenge me to a fight or something. Mostly just peer pressure and stuff, being the son of a dojo master. So to avoid it, I started hanging out with girls. For the most part, they really didn't bother me about it. So I hung out with them more and more, and people expected less of me as a martial artist. Eventually I did get into it, but of course, that's also a separate story, involving- surprise, surprise- a girl I liked." He shook his head. "Geez, I really am terrible at this, huh?"

The general consensus seemed to be yes, but unmaliciously. Misao raised an eyebrow at him. "Has your entire life been about girls?"

"Girls and music, I guess."

The fanged girl stared at him. "I thought you were an otaku?"

Ryuuko thought about it. "I guess a little bit, but not very much. More just a fan. I really only focus on shows with really good music."

"Or pretty girls?" Inori smiled inquisitively.

Ryuuko blushed. "So, um, what should I do about Ayano?" he redirected. The other girls giggled. Then a knock at the door interrupted. Matsuri got up to answer the door, leaving the rest to talk. "Seriously, It's getting out of hand. I just wish there was an easier way to wade through this brier bush of emotional complications."

Inori rested her head on her hand. "Well, I think the easiest way go to about it is to find out what about this scenario bothers her the most."

"That's easy enough," Misao answered off-handedly, and when the other girls and Ryuuko stared at her, she continued, "What really? You don't get it? She just left a two-year relationship over a major disagreement, and got together with Ryuuko a couple of days later, and not even a week in, one of _his_ old flames pops out of the woodwork? I'd see that as a double-standard. No wonder she's upset."

The black-haired teen's eyebrows shot up, and he hurried away from the table. He passed Matsuri letting in Konata and Miyuki, and hustled to the back of the hall. Then something donned on him, and he spun around.

Matsuri sighed. "Last door on the left."

He nodded, and knocked on the door. "Um, girls?" No response. "Ayano?" Tap tap tap. Still nothing. He turned to walk back down the hall, and saw that the group at large hadn't moved an inch. In fact, almost all of the Hiiragi household was staring at him, plus Misao, Konata, and Miyuki. "I don't suppose I can just go back to studying, right?"

The general consensus was no.

"Dammit. Alright, alright. So I have three options. Knock on the door until someone answers, barge into the room one way or another, or go home," he sighed, and turned back to Kagami's bedroom door, which was looking more and more like solid wall. Tap tap tap. "Guys? I can keep this up all day, you know. It's not like I'm going anywhere."

The door almost threw itself open, with Kagami stepping into the doorway, glaring daggers at him. "And why not?"

He jabbed a thumb behind him. "Female blockade. I'm quite literally _not going anywhere._"

Kagami took a glance over his shoulder. "What are you talking about?"

He turned around to follow her gaze, only to discover that the hallway was bare. "Oh, not cool! I call shenanigans! BS!" He was interrupted, however, by the door behind him slamming closed. He didn't even bother turning around, and stalked down the hall. He only got about halfway, however, when Misao, Inori, and Matsuri stepped in his way.

"Oh, come on. I tried. I totally did! I can't get a foot in the door over there, and I can't even get halfway down the hall here! What else am I supposed to do?" Matsuri gave him a stern look, and Inori seemed almost passive. Misao, however, seemed highly amused. "What's so funny,?"

Misao didn't make a sound, instead, just shook with silent laughter.

"Oh, sure, just laugh at me. I'm not surprised you're amused by this, hell, you probably would have planned... it... this... way. Ayano!" he barked, stomping back down the hall. The door opened seconds before he got a chance to knock, revealing a highly-amused-looking orange haired girl.

"Yes?"

Ryuuko stopped, turned, and glared at Misao, then at the older Hiiragi sisters, then turned back around to glare at Ayano, and, just behind her, a slightly bemused Kagami. "Shenanigans!" he barked again, and stomped past the larger group of girls into the living room, reclaiming his seat rather aggressively from the empty air in his way, and proceeded to pout. Which lasted all of two seconds, as he realized he didn't really know how. So instead, he glared back up at the group at large, who stood in the doorway to the living room, and for the most part, grinned evilly at him. "Ok, whose idea was it?" he growled slightly.

The girls returned to their seats, scooting the newcomers around so that everyone had a spot. Misao raised her hand. "I didn't really know the details, but the idea of a prank on you was my idea."

Inori and Ayano traded girlish giggles. Then Inori spoke up. "To be honest, it was actually my idea to mess with you a bit, Minegeshi-san just fine-tuned it. After she confided in Kagami the issues she was having with her old boyfriend-"

"That manipulative, chauvinistic, homophobic peebody," Misao interjected.

Ayano rolled her eyes. "They've been arguing back and forth for days. Anyway, after I started talking to Kagami about him, Inori overheard us once, and your name came up somewhere. She went off on this little rant about you, and-"

"Let's just say it's because of Inori that Ayano started taking interest in you," Kagami finished. "Really, you have some of the most amazing luck with girls.

Ryuuko felt a vein twitch in his temple. "Yeah, right."

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

After a few more laughs at his expense, and a few phone calls, Ryuuko and Ayano were packed into Shiki's car, and headed home. Ayano had taken an interest in learning about the Ryuosen family, if only to have something to talk about.

"So, what kind of person is your brother?" she asked quietly. Shiki shrugged noncommittally, and Ryuuko raised an eyebrow.

"Well," he started, "Koji's kind of... um..."

"Rude?" Shiki suggested.

"More like he's a little too assertive. He's the kind of person who-"

"Won't shut up?" his older sister interjected.

"Oh, he's not that bad. He's just a little-"

"Annoying?"

"Energetic-"

"-Abusive-"

"-a little verbally aggressive-

"-Americanized-"

"-exuberant-"

"-irreplaceable?" Shiki finished, and Ayano could tell there was a hint of a smile in her voice.

"Yeah, he's a total crackjob," Ryuuko agreed.

The orange haired girl nodded appreciatively. "It sounds like you get along pretty well."

Her boyfriend nodded. "As much as we can, given the circumstances. He's usually in America now, and since Shiki and I moved out, it's really our parents trying to keep everyone together. But we do what we can."

"It sounds kind of hard. I'm glad my sister and I both still live at home. I wouldn't want to have to go out of my way to see her, although I still would," she mused.

Shiki's ears perked up. "You have a sister?"

"Down." barked Ryuuko. "No jailbait for you. She is your younger sister, right?"

Ayano nodded, unsure of how to react. "Yes, she's younger. Um... do I want to know?" she added quietly, gesturing at their driver.

Ryuuko just shook his head. "One day, you will know all answers to all questions. Just not this day."

The two girls raised an eyebrow at him, but he simply shrugged it off. "Um, Shiki? Eyes. Road. Be there."

"Um, Ryuuko? Apartment. Get out. Be there," she countered.

He glanced out of his window to discover that they were, in fact, back at the apartment complex. Piling out of the car, the trio dredged their way through the lobby and up the elevator, stopping only feet from the door to their apartment. Which was slightly ajar. And radiating noise in large quantities.

Shiki and Ryuuko exchanged glances, while Ayano covered her ears. "Um, what is that racket?" she shouted, so as to be heard over the abusive volume levels.

The two looked back at her. "He's here," they said, almost at once. Ryuuko took the few steps forward to the apartment, and slowly eased the door open. Ayano moved to follow him, but Shiki held out an arm to stop her. "Trust me," was all she said.

Before Ayano got a chance to ask why, a great deal of things happened at once. Or just about. The door flew open almost of it's own accord, followed by a blur of motion that could only be described as an assault, soon followed by a very peculiar sight.

Ryuuko seemed to be holding what looked like a smaller, blonde version of himself at bay with one hand to their forehead, while said assailant struggled to complete his maneuver. Namely, a tackle-hug.

"Um, Ryuuko? Is this..." Ayano started, but lost interest in completing the sentence.

The taller boy nodded. "Ayano, meet my older brother, Koji."

At the mention of his name, the shorter, yet obviously older, male righted himself, shook off Ryuuko's hand, standing still long enough for Ayano to get a good look at him. Bonde hair and green eyes, with a face much like his younger brothers, Koji Ryuosen looked much like someone had run his younger brother through some photo editing filters. His style of dress, though, could not have been more different. While Ryuuko usually dressed in detailed, complicated black or neutral outfits, Koji looked like he just grabbed a shirt and a pair of jeans and called it good.

Ayano blinked a couple of times, and gave a small, uncertain wave. "Um, nice to meet you. I'm Ayano Minegeshi."

Koji smiled and waved broadly. "Heard alot about you! What's up, I'm Koji!" his voice was loud and boisterous, and they had no problems hearing him over the still loud ruckus, now discernable as music, emanating from the front door.

"So I see..." she said, rather awkwardly. She seemed to be dealing with someone whose energy levels rivaled that of Misao. "Um, what is that you're playing?" she asked, half-heartedly hoping he'd just go back to paying attention to his siblings.

It seemed to have worked. He whipped around again, and grabbed his younger brother's hand, exclaiming, "Oh, Ryuuko, kid, you gotta see this! I picked up so much music in America! They're prolific little bastards, I'll give them that!"

As the two disappeared into the apartment, a few moments later, the volume corrected itself to human levels, and Shiki and Ayano stepped in after them. "Um, Shiki?"

The older girl stopped at the door. "Hm?"

"Um, are you sure it's ok for me to be here? I mean, you guys haven't seen each other in awhile, and-"

Shiki held up a hand. "Trust me, you get used to him. And don't try to tell me that's not what it's about," she added, as Ayano opened her mouth to protest. "I've seen that look before. He's just got a lot of energy, but as long as he can direct it at something, he's usually rather enjoyable to be around. And right now, he's directing all that energy at repairing his relationship with his brother. So I think we're going to be OK. As for Ryuuko, well..."

Her sentence was finished for her as they stepped the rest of the way into the apartment. They had walked in on another spectacle: the two of them trying to best each other in what seemed to be a headlock contest.

"You mean YOU'RE the real reason Inori and that whole bunch went out of their way to mess with me?" Ryuuko barked, using his height as good leverage to drive Koji into the carpet. Who seemed to be trying to counter with a very slowly progressing leg sweep.

"Well, it's not like you expected me to not do anything, right?" his voice was somewhat strangled, and his face was changing colors.

Shiki completely ignored them, walking around them and strolling into the kitchen. Ayano simply sat down on the couch and watched the two play it out. It didn't last very long, and the two eventually collapsed into the floor, laughing, and short of breath.

Shiki returned soon after, a drink in each hand. She offered the younger girl one as she sat down. After a second or so of silence, filled only by the sounds of the two brothers gasping for air, their sister turned to Ayano and said, quite simply, "Yes, they're always like this."

AN: Much shorter chapter than usual, mainly because it took me TWO WEEKS TO GET THIS FAR. Future chapters, I will try to stick to my 5000 word self-limit.


	14. Chapter 14

1A/N: You want motivation to write? Go find someone better than you. You'll be pouring your heart out, just to get better. FreetheKyuubi, I name you my ETERNAL RIVAL!

Although he'll probably never read this.

Also, a few changes in POV, just to let you know.

Chapter 14: Piece by Piece.

Koji shook his head in disbelief. "Ok, let me get this straight," he started.

Ryuuko nodded. "Go ahead."

Koji took a breath. "You have a girlfriend who's as tolerant of your anime obsession-"

"Not an obsession-"

"-Whatever. Anyway, you have a new girlfriend who's as sweet and understanding as anyone I've ever met. You have a whole new crowd of friends who are all girls. Among them are two sets of lesbians, four hardcore Otaku, including your own personal fangirls, you belong to the Animation Research Club, in almost every sense of the word, and are revered around the school as a source of almost fangirlish worship, thanks to playing the hero not once but _three_ times, and on top of that, got to spend an entire weekend with a house full of pretty girls in their PJ's."

Ryuuko rose his hand, "I would like to point out that they were not in their PJ's the entire weekend, and I did not share a room with any of them."

"Either way, you've become basically a playboy for your school, especially amongst those with more dramatic fangirl tendencies," Koji concluded.

Ayano raised an eyebrow. "You keep bringing up this fangirl thing. Is that some kind of big issue?"

Koji nodded gravely. "Of course it is. It's a very good thing you're with him, Minegeshi-san, or he would have dramatic problems, especially down the line."

Ryuuko sighed heavily. "I still get love letters, even with you around," he added.

Shiki shrugged. "I don't see how it's such a big deal, especially since the most they'd want to do is be intimate with him, on various physical levels."

The two boys shuddered. Then Koji stared at his younger sister, with a deep, concerned expression. "Ok, Shiki, imagine that there's a Lead concert going on nearby."

The older girl's face adopted a serene, pleasant expression. "Done."

"Now imagine instead, that the band is moving into the area for an extended period of time," Ryuuko continued.

Shiki started to drool slightly, " I can do that."

Koji and Ryuuko paused, and nodded to each other. Ayano glanced back and forth between the two, confused, but the younger of the two caught her gaze, and shook his head slightly. The elder brother added, "Now imagine the scene in front of their home when all of the other girls find out."

Shiki's eyes snapped open, and her face paled slightly. Then, wordlessly, she got to her feet, walked up to Ayano, and knelt before her. "Please take good care of my brother, Ayano-sama."

The orange haired girl was even more confused. The two brothers exchanged glances. "You want to cover this one, Komodo-kun?"

Ryuuko nodded. "I might as well. You'd probably screw it up with improperly used American slang." Koji opened his mouth to protest, but Ryuuko cut him off. "Ok, Ayano, you know how sometimes riots break out at midnight releases for really popular products? Or how a lot of people have security guards in case their fans get too rough?" Ayano nodded slowly, as she started to grasp where this was going. "Well, I'm in an environment that doesn't provide any kind of protection from overzealous people. Not to mention, these are high school girls, who have not developed the kind of restraint that older fans would have. They also don't approach fellow students in the same way they would something that's widely acknowledged as popular, except in a small circle."

Ayano quirked an eyebrow at that last statement. "What does that have to do with it?"

Koji interjected. "Think about it. How would you approach someone famous, or a well-known product?"

Ayano mused that a bit. "I guess I would try and wait in line, or follow instructions, to make sure I got a better shot at it."

Koji nodded. "Exactly, now imagine what happens when it's something without that level of notoriety? You'd be a little more careless, right? Because it doesn't have the same impact. But if you approach it with the same fervor as a famous person or product, then what happens?"

Shiki, having returned to her seat, nodded along. "He wouldn't stand a chance if they backed him into a corner. Having you around puts him in an unattainable status, so while they still have a dramatic interest in him, where before they would approach him actively, they're most likely going to be more passive about it, bordering on background stalkerish. Hence the letters, instead of straightforward confessions."

Ayano raised an eyebrow. "But why do they still send the letters if he's unattainable?"

Ryuuko smiled wryly. "For about the same reason I didn't have as big of an issue making out with you when you were dating Kusakabe-san. In the hopes that they would be able to change my mind in their favor. The biggest difference being that they don't have that kind of chance with me."

His girlfriend matched his smile. "So what made you think you had that kind of chance with me?"

He blushed a little at that. "Honestly, I didn't. I figured at first that I was acting as emotional support. It wasn't until a couple of days afterwards that I realized that, if everything went my way, that it could be a really good thing for both of us." The rest of the room stared at him as he blushed a bit deeper. "So," he mused, "What do you guys want to do for the rest of the day?"

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

Having said goodbye to two of their guests, the Hiiragi family took some time to settle down. Konata had already been approved to stay over, having done so dozens of times. The rest of the family, sans Tsukasa, however, were unaware as to the true reasoning behind her more frequent visits, and Kagami's habit of appearing at the Izumi household more often.

Kagami mused this aloud to Konata, after everyone had gone to bed. "I mean, isn't it weird?"

Konata glanced at her. "How so?"

"Well," Kagami started quietly. "You'd think they'd start asking more questions about it, especially since we've spent almost every night together for the last week. I mean, we don't really do anything unless we're at your house, because, even though Tsukasa knows, I seriously doubt she'd be comfortable with listening to it."

Konata grinned. "You are pretty loud. But you have a point," she added, cutting Kagami off mid-argument. "It's enough to make me wonder if they're just pretending that they don't know. But even if that's the case, why do we need to worry about it?. That most likely just means that they're respecting our decision to not tell them right away."

"I guess that's true," the twin-tailed girl sighed. "I still wish they'd be more open with us. Even if we haven't been completely open with them."

"Are you still worried about that story we came up with over the sleepover?" Konata asked quietly, putting down the manga she had been reading, and taking a seat next to Kagami on the bed. "I still don't thin you have anything to worry about. Especially with Ryuuko backing us up on that one."

Kagami shook her head. "That's another thing that bothers me. Why would he go out of his way to lie like that, especially to Ayano? Granted they didn't really take an interest in each other that early, but what reason would he have to cover for us like that?"

"You mean about us having slept together that night?" Konata mused. Kagami nodded. "Probably because he knew it wouldn't do any good to tell the truth. If he had, he would have had to explain to her that we've been together much longer than we're letting on to our friends. It's the only way she'd have been comfortable with it. Besides, he probably figured it wasn't his place to go into any kind of detail on our relationship, anyway."

"But how would he have known that we were together beforehand? We didn't tell anyone about it until that night. At least, I didn't," she said, narrowing her eyes at the short otaku.

"Hey, neither did I. But you're forgetting something," Konata added with a mischievous catlike grin.

"And what would that be?"

"He's a yuri fanboy. Well, maybe not to the extremes that you would think about most fanboys, but he has a certain appreciation for GL."

Kagami raised an eyebrow. "GL?"

"Girl lo-"

"Ok, I got it!" Kagami exclaimed, planting a hand over Konata's mouth. "So what, he's a fan of lesbians. Most guys are."

Konata shook her head violently. "No, that's not the same. Almost all guys like lesbian action, but he's a fan of GL on an emotional level. You know how Hiyorin is really big on romantic stories? The whole love ever after thing?" Kagami nodded. "Well, there's a select fanbase that is a large supporter of true love between girls. We see it as love in it's purest and most beautiful form. A maiden's heart is about true love, and love shared between two souls who's views are so identical? It's poetry in motion, Kagamin!"

Kagami smiled. "That's kind of a beautiful sentiment, Konata. I- wait. You said we-"

Konata's catlike smile returned. "That's right. And 'we' can spot a girl couple a mile away, even closeted ones. It's like one otaku spotting another. There are certain traits that we give off that make us easy to recognize. He probably picked up on it from day one."

"You mean that time when he was in the nurse's office? You crawling all over me probably gave it away," Kagami tried to scowl, but ended up smiling, despite herself. "Not that I'm complaining."

The blue haired girl leaned on her girlfriends shoulder. "So what do you want to do? Do you think we should say something?"

Kagami nodded. "Eventually. I just think we need to come up with something to help cushion the blow. Even if they do know about it, there's always a chance that they're hoping it's not true, so confirming it may not have a positive effect."

Konata rested her chin on her hand. "That's a very valid point," then, she grinned slightly. "You got that out of a manga, didn't you?"

The other girl shook her head violently. "No, no way! That's not even... Ok, yeah. But that still doesn't mean-"

"-You're an otaku, Kagamin!" Konata exclaimed, jumping at her girlfriend.

The two fell into the bed amidst a flurry of protests and affection.

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

Sunday brought about many things. The Ryuousen siblings were taking the day on the town, celebrating their first weekend together under positive circumstances. Konata and Kagami, due to their family being busy for the day for multiple reasons, had the house to themselves, and had resolved to take the day to themselves. And the first years hall all decided to spend the day together. Having decided to meet at Minami's house, the girls had one plan today: to have fun. With a large amount of stress plaguing each one of them, they had all figured that a day of fun together would be most welcome. Especially before all of the chaos that came along with the summer season really kicked in. The first one to arrive was, predictably, Yutaka. The two took any opportunity they could to spend time together. It helped that Minami's mother was very nonchalant about them being a couple.

Minami greeted her girlfriend at the door. "Come on in, Yutaka, you're the first one to arrive."

The shorter girl blushed slightly. "I was hoping that was the case. I wanted to spend some time with you before everyone got together today. We don't get an awful lot of chances at school."

Minami turned a light vermillion. "I know. It would be nice if we could find a way to be together more often..." The two of them grew quiet, as they slowly inched towards each other.

Only to be interrupted. "Oh, Yutaka-chan, I didn't know you were here," Minami's mother exclaimed, having stepped into the main hall.

Yutaka jumped slightly, and stammered a greeting. "H-hello, Iwasaki-okaa-san, thank you for having me over." She bowed, and nearly stumbled.

Ms. Iwasaki chuckled. "It's ok, I can understand how you may be embarrassed, I certainly was when I had my first relationship. You're not really sure how to hold yourself around other people, are you?"

Yutaka smiled nervously. "I guess. I think it's more that I'm nervous around you. I don't want to be... um..."

"You don't want me to walk in on you kissing my daughter, is that it?" Minami's mother smiled. "Well, I can certainly appreciate that. I have no problem with it, I even encourage it, for as much happiness as you two bring each other, but I think any couple should be discreet about their affections."

Minami nodded. "I understand. Well, our friends aren't due to arrive for a little while, so-"

"Why don't you two hang out in your room, Minami-chan?"

Minami smiled. "That sounds like a good idea."

The two girls giggled amongst each other, and walked into the back of the house.

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

Elsewhere, in a familiar apartment complex...

"Patty-chan, what's taking so long? It's not like you to spend this much time on an outfit, when we're just going over to our friend's house," Hiyori stated through the door.

Patricia, who had holed herself up in her bedroom, exclaimed back, "I've still got to pack a bag, Hiyorin!"

The young mangaka blinked. "Um, why?"

"Because I have a shift later this evening, remember? I have to take my costumes home to wash them, because they're custom fits! And besides, I want to make sure I look extra good tonight!" the American explained, camping out in front of her vanity mirror. "You can come in, though, I'm wearing clothes!"

Hiyori sighed, opening the door. _Good, _she thought to herself. _Having these daydreams about my friends is bad enough, seeing them in anything less than normal attire would annihilate me._ "So why are you going through so much trouble tonight?"

"Because it's a special show! Kona-chan and I are doing a duet from Kiddy Grade! And besides, Kona-chan said she'd convinced the Ryuosen siblings to drop by tonight, and..." Patricia trailed off, blushing.

Her friend sighed. "Are you still on about this whole thing with Ryuuko-sempai? He's already dating someone-"

"Who doesn't understand his needs or his lifestyle! They're completely wrong together! The only reason he went with her instead of me is because I was too aggressive. If I take a passive approach, he'll see that I'm the girl he needs," the blonde girl heaved a sigh. "Hiyorin, haven't you learned anything from manga and anime? Even after the main character makes a romantic choice, there's still always a chance that he could change his mind! It happens all the time. Besides, we still haven't gotten to the festival yet, or the sports festival, and he's going to be in our school through next February! I have plenty of chances to woo him!"

Hiyori pinched her nose. "Even if that's true, you're missing one big part of that typical plot arc. Even if you're who he goes after in the long run, that decision usually doesn't happen until the very end of the story! And with all these events building up, according to your own logic, it might even take him till the end of the school year to make that decision. And that's assuming that he follows the same logic you do. And besides, you keep saying you understand him better that Ayano-sempai-" Patricia let out a low 'hmph' at the name, "-but I don't think he's as big an otaku or a fanboy as you make him out to be. Sure, he has the memorabilia, and he gets our references, but he's usually very laid back when it comes to that kind of lifestyle. I mean, even with the sleepover event, he wasn't that big on calling it an event scene. He's not the kind of person to see the world as a romance game, like you or Konata-sempai, at least from what I've seen. Matter of fact, from what I've seen of him, and the few times we've hung out, his favorite thing about most anime tends to be the music."

Patricia gave her a look through the mirror. "What are you saying?"

Hiyori sighed, and sat on her friend's bed. "I'm saying, I don't think the otaku culture is really his big niche. And that you don't have as much in common with him as you think you do. From what I understand of Ayano-sempai, from what Tsukasa-san and Konata-sempai have told me, she's rather ladylike and feminine. She likes to cook, and she has very artistic tastes. Have you seen the way she dresses? It's usually pretty fashionable, and rather well-done. I think the two get along so well because they're such artistic, free-spirited people. I'll agree, Ryuuko-sempai is rather boisterous when he wants to be, whereas Ayano-sempai is somewhat reserved and calm, but think about it. Ryuuko seems to talk about music all the time, even when it comes to anime. He talks about soundtracks and different artists. He's learning the guitar, and writes his own lyrics. No offense, Patty-chan, but you seem to delve much farther into the otaku culture than he does, much like myself or Konata-sempai. You two might be good together for a time, but I think he'd get worn out on it much faster than you would, and where would you be then?"

Patricia seemed to mull this over, then finished applying her makeup, worked some finishing touches on her outfit, and grabbed her bag. "Come, on, we need to get going," she said flatly, leading the way out of her apartment.

Hiyori heaved another sigh. _I just hope she doesn't do anything drastic,_ she thought, as they stepped outside.

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

Somewhere in Akihabara...

"Remind me again how you convinced me to come to Akihabara?" Kagami muttered, keeping pace with her shorter girlfriend, who had at this point bought several bags worth of merchandise.

Konata raised an eyebrow. "Because I have a shift later this evening at the cosplay café, and you said you wanted to come!"

The twin-tailed girl gave her a look. "Yes, but did we have to come here _three hours early?_ I thought we were going to spend the day together, just us."

Konata grinned. "We are! That's why we're going to my favorite karaoke house!"

Kagami stammered, "Ka-ka-karaoke? But you know I can't sing!"

The otaku kept grinning, her smile taking on a familiar, catlike trait. "That doesn't mean you don't like to. Besides, it will be just us! Nobody we know is going to be there!"

The tsundere cast a suspicious glance in her girlfriend's general direction. "And why are you so certain of this?"

"Because the establishment is run by one of my old friends from Comiket! You know, that circle I was a booth girl for? The leader of that group opened his own karaoke house, only a couple of weeks ago. And he's giving me a huge discount!" Konata exclaimed.

Kagami nodded in understanding. "So that's why we came all the way here, as opposed to going somewhere local. You just wanted to save money."

Konata groaned. "It's also really conveniently close to work, so we don't have to rush so that I can be there on time. Besides, we need to meet Ryuukyon and his family beforehand, to show them where the café is."

Kagami blinked. "They're coming to the café this afternoon?" she asked, as they turned a corner, and started downhill.

Konata nodded. "Yep. I got a call from him last night. Apparently Shiki didn't know where I worked, and she wanted to see the place. Especially tonight."

Hiiragi paused. "Why tonight?"

The blue-haired midget grinned. "We're doing Kiddy Grade tonight."

Kagami raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that that one sci-fi anime with those two girls as the lead- oh, I get it. Guess I should have seen that coming. Anyway, why are they all showing up?"

"Apparently, his older brother wants to meet all of his friends. Ryuukyon mentioned something about the guy wanting to play a bigger role in his life, to make up for the time they'd lost fighting about-"

Kagami grimaced, and raised a hand to interrupt her. "Don't say it. I know full well what those two were fighting about. I'm just waiting for Inori to start dropping hints about how much more successful her love life is than mine."

Konata mulled that over. "Well, if she does, you can safely assume that she doesn't know about us."

"...I guess that's true. I haven't thought about it much."

"Speaking of relationships, there was something I wanted to ask you about with Ayano-san and Ryuukyon," Konata stated, stopping in front of a couple double doors. Kagami assumed that they had reached their destination. As the two walked in,. Konata gave a small greeting to the girl at the front desk, and paid for a couple hours.

"What about them?" Kagami asked, as they made their way to the back of the building.

"Since the two of them have started dating, have you seen more of Ryuuko, or less of Ayano?" Konata opened the door for her girlfriend, ushering her into the somewhat small karaoke booth.

Kagami took a seat. "Why do you ask?"

"Just testing a theory."

Kagami thought about it. "I guess I've seen more of Ryuuko, to be honest. Which doesn't really surprise me. Ayano was dating someone beforehand, so I guess I've already gotten used to her scheduling time with her boyfriend around time with her friends. But recently, not always, but a couple of times, Ryuuko has tagged along when Ayano hangs out with Misao and myself. Which doesn't bother me that much, he's a decent enough person to hang out with. On the other hand, he doesn't hang out with us at lunch anymore, usually spending time alone with Ayano, or hanging out in my classroom with her and Misao."

"So how does Misao take to all of this?" Konata asked, as they set up a playlist of songs.

"Pretty well, actually. She and Ryuuko-kun have similar energy levels, even if they have different interests. Ayano told me they've started bonding over video games and stuff, but for the most part, I think she kinda sees it the way she did Ayano's old boyfriend. That is to say, her brother. Although I think she's less embarrassed by it. I can't imagine how much patience Ayano must have though, putting up with those two."

Konata raised an eyebrow, and handed her a mic. "Well, you're pretty patient with me, and I can safely assume that I've got similar energy levels."

Kagami heaved a sigh, as the first song started up, and Konata bounced back and forth. The twin-tailed girl recognized it as a Haruhi theme. "Ain't that the truth," she muttered.

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

Still in Akihabara, but a few blocks away...

"Koji, what the hell did you drink this morning?" Shiki sighed, as her older brother bounded down the street. "Honestly, you're going to give yourself, or me, a heart attack."

The younger sibling grinned. "Well, if he croaks, I'm not cleaning it up. That's all you."

The sister of the group glared at Ryuuko. "And why the hell is that?"

"Cause you're the one who said it," Ryuuko explained. "If he has a heart attack, it'll be your fault because you said something. It's like saying nothing can go wrong, or it can't get any worse. You're just asking for trouble. Hell, with as much energy as he has right now, you probably guaranteed that he'll be sporting a toe-tag by the end of the night."

"I want it bedazzled!" Koji exclaimed from a few steps ahead of them, then fell back to join his siblings. "So, little bro, what are we doing here again?"

The youngest Ryuosen sighed. "We're going to Konata's cosplay café, so that you can meet some more of my friends, and we can sit and munch on all you can eat snacks and drinks for a couple of hours."

"And so I can watch pretty girls in school uniforms roleplay for me," Shiki grinned evilly.

Ryuuko sighed. "Just remember what we walked about. You can't take any of them home with you."

His sister groaned, and opened her mouth to protest, when Koji cut her off. "Hey, is this the building?"

The youngest shook his head. "No, this is just where we're meeting Izumiya-chan and Kagami-sama. They're showing us the way from here."

Koji raised an eyebrow. "Izumiya-chan? Kagami-sama? The hell kinds of nicknames are those?"

Ryuuko started to explain, but it was his turn to get interrupted, by a slightly callous voice stating, quite flatly, "It's just something they do. Best to ignore them." The group turned to see Kagami and Konata coming out of the front door of the building, and Koji nodded. "So you must be Kagami-san, right? Or should I call you -sama?"

The Hiiragi girl twitched. "No, for the love of god, no. I can barely stand your brother and my girlfriend using that name. I don't want it spreading around. I'm going to assume that you're Koji-san? Nice to meet you."

The eldest brother nodded. "Same here. And that would make you," he added, turning to Konata, "Izumiya-san, right?"

Konata nodded, sporting her usual catlike grin. "That's right. I take it you're the big brother that keeps sending Ryuukyon stuff from America? I have a co-worker who's American."

Koji raised an eyebrow. "Reeeaaallllyyy?" A sly smile spread across his face.

"She's underage, you pedo," Ryuuko explained.

"And overdeveloped," Shiki added.

Ryuuko groaned, as Koji's grin grew wider, and his eyes glazed slightly. "You're not helping! Koji!" he barked.

The eldest snapped to attention, saluting. "Yes, sir!"

A muscle in Ryuuko's brow twitched. "You are not allowed to hit on underage girls! She's probably five years younger than you!"

"Six," Shiki corrected. "Besides, she's one of Ryuuko-chan's fangirls," she cooed, poking her younger brother in the ribs.

Said brother groaned. "Don't remind me."

Konata grinned slightly, amused by the banter between siblings. "Is it anything like this in your family?" she asked her girlfriend.

Kagami groaned, as well. "God, no. We argue about normal things, like dinner, and who took the last snack out of the basket. Definitely not pedophiles and fangirls. Hey, Ryuuko?" she added, addressing the youngest sibling, who, at current, was holding his older brother in a headlock.

"Yeah?" he straightened himself, letting Koji go.

"Why isn't Ayano here?"

Ryuuko shrugged. "She and Misa-ball decided to spend a day together doing girl stuff. At least that's how she described it."

Konata blinked. "Misa-ball?"

The youngest boy raised an eyebrow. "Have you _seen_ her bento boxes?"

Kagami grinned weakly. "Yeah, I can see it. She has meatballs for lunch practically every other day, ever since Ayano taught her how to make them. I swear, if it wasn't for the other people in her house, that's all she would eat. Makes me wonder what she's going to live off of when she moves out on her own."

Shiki yawned. "Ok, this banter is all well and lovely, but where is this café? I'm not exactly having a party out here."

Konata nodded. "Yeah, true. Ok, it's up this way," she pointed, leading the group onward. As they walked, she glanced behind her. "Oh, Ryuukyon?"

"Yeah?" he responded, glancing at her.

"I should warn you, Patricia knows you're coming. She wouldn't stop talking about it when I told her last night. And I got a text from Hiyorin. She's a little concerned about it."

Ryuuko sighed. "Well, I can't say I didn't see something like this coming. Oh, well, I'm not going to let any kind of uneasiness between us ruin tonight. I plan to have fun."

"And eat your weight in endless snacks," Shiki smirked.

"Quiet, you. At least I can. I don't gain that much weight from eating binges," her brother retorted.

Shiki sighed. "I know, I know. I just wish I could eat what I want without gaining so much weight. I've had to diet like crazy to keep my figure."

Almost instantly, Kagami whirled around on the spot, and grabbed Shiki's hand. "I know exactly how you feel! I can't lose wight no matter how much I diet!"

Shiki shook her head. "It's a lonely and desperate road, isn't it, Kagami-san?"

Konata and Ryuuko glanced at each other. "Hey, maybe now you'll have a partner to diet with, right sis?" Ryuuko offered.

The two girls glared at him, and Konata simply patted his shoulder as he cringed. "We shall never understand the realm of women, Ryuukyon."

Koji glanced at this series of exchanges, as the group walked along. "Um, guys? Are we there yet?"

A/N: Not really a filler chapter, cause it explains some stuff that I wanted out of the way, and touches on the next story arc I wanted to work on. Or, moreover, it creates another story arc for me to work on. Like I've said before, I don't plan out any of my chapters, so the whole Patricia thing kind of set itself into motion. Of course, I still have a few other arcs to cover, like Sakura and her friends, because yes, they will be important later. (How, though, I have no idea. I just can't stand creating OC's, and then not using them for anything but plot points. Stuff will happen with them.)

When I first started in on this chapter, it felt like a good one to end the book on, and then I'd go on to finish other plot arcs in the sequel. But it just didn't happen. And yes, regardless of how this story ends, there will be a sequel. I want to end this story sometime during the school year, and have the sequel focus on their college life, bringing in some other characters that only appear in the manga. Either way, there's still a lot of work to do. But I hope you have fun with it!


	15. Chapter 15

1A/N: I can't believe I've hit Chapter 15 of this story. I know I haven't gotten a big fanbase for this story yet, but I do have some really loyal fans that I'd like to thank individually. I know I'm quite a ways away from the end, but there are some people I really want to thank.

Otakugirl 347: Seeing a new review always makes me happy, and you've always got something positive to say. Thank you.

Chaosglory626: Thanks for pointing out the seme/uke thing, I wasn't sure about it, and by the time I looked it up, I'd forgotten where I'd made the mistake. :)

Mekoblank18: It's kinda selfish, but I like getting good scores. ^.^

RJO: Loyal fans are a must for anyone to keep going. Thanks for your ongoing support.

And a special thanks to a certain Gaian who's played a big part on the continuation of this series. Arigatou, Foxy-chan!

Ok, enough with the serious crap. Let's watch this train wreck, shall we?

Chapter 15: Lessons Learned

"Ok, so how far away are we from the café now?" Koji grumbled, as they made their way uphill.

Kagami felt a muscle in her eyebrow twitch. "Much too far for my tastes, I'm sure," she chided. Konata chuckled.

"Oh, give him a break, Kagami-sama," Ryuuko said, adding a slight grin when a dark look crossed her face. "It's not like he's really upset about it. My older brother is one of those people who always has to have something to say. Uncomfortable silences bug him about as much as me."

Konata squinted her eyes a little. "But you don't complain just to fill the gaps in conversation. You usually just kind of stare off into space. Are you thinking perverted thoughts in your spare time, Ryuukyon?"

A few people in the group started at that comment, but Ryuuko said simply, "Nah, I just always have a song in my head."

"As long as you don't start dancing randomly," Shiki muttered. "It's bad enough to come home after work and see you dancing to music only you can hear." Ryuuko blushed slightly, but Koji stopped in his tracks. "What?" Shiki asked. "You've seen him dance, too."

"No, no, it's not that," Koji answered. "I'm just surprised you have a job. This is the first I've heard of it."

His sister gave him a sour look. "What, it's not that unusual for me to be working, is it? Ryuuko?"

The youngest waved it off. "Of course not," he assured her. Shiki smiled. "Oh, by the way, Kagami, could you remind me of something?"

"Huh, what's that?" Kagami asked.

"What are the other signs of the apocalypse as set forth by the Shinto?" he laughed as he ducked away from a swing from his sister. "Oh, come on, that was good! We even have a shrine maiden here to fit the punchline!"

Koji blinked. "Shrine maiden?"

Shiki grabbed his collar. "No. It's bad enough we have to worry about going all PedoBear on the Blonde American girl."

Koji's ears perked. "You didn't mention she was blonde."

"Oh, goddammit, Shiki. Don't make it worse." Ryuuko groaned.

"Guys, guys!" Konata interjected. "We're here." she told them, gesturing to the building her cosplay café was in. "It's the second floor."

The three Ryuuosen kids continued their conversation/argument all the way to the door, but Konata hushed them as they made their way in. _I'm starting to see why Kagamin always tries to get time out of the house. Having siblings that know everything about you looks harder than I thought._

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

Ryuuko wasn't entirely sure what to make of the situation. At first, the battle plan was just him and his brother and sister, getting a table at the café and observing Konata at work. Then, understandably, Kagami joined their party, which served to make things more lively, if only to watch her and Konata play off of each other. So, understandably, he was surprised when their group took their seats.

"So, um, how did a family outing turn into a giant marauding party?" he asked noone in particular, as he glanced around at the large group he sat with. They had met up with Minami, Yutaka, and Hiyori upon arriving, and they had all agreed to sit together, which involved putting two tables together to fit everyone.

"So, Ryuuko-sempai, what brings you and your family here?" Hiyori asked, if only to fill an awkward gap in conversation that had settled over the table. They were waiting for their drink orders to show up, and the hourly rendition the staff performed wasn't due for another several minutes.

Ryuuko welcomed the conversation. "It's actually my brother's idea. Well, him and my sister. It's kind of a long story."

"I was trying to think of something fun for the three of us to do, you know, take some time to bond before I have to go back to America. So Ryuuko dropped a call to Konata, to ask her if there were any good places she knew of for us to spend some time, and she gave us this plug about this place," Koji explained.

Shiki grinned. "And when Ryuuko passed on the info, I got a little excited about it. I'm a big fan of Kiddy Grade."

Hiyori raised both eyebrows. "Wow, Shiki-san, I didn't expect you to like anime. That's kind of cool."

A flat expression crossed Ryuuko's face. "Don't be too impressed. The only other animes she expresses any interest in are Maria Holic, My Hime, Strawberry Panic, and Girl Meets Girl. You can see where this is going."

Shiki shrugged. "It's not my fault you leave your anime folder lying around."

The rest of the girls and Koji gave him a look. "What?" he asked. "Like that's the only kind of show I watch. And wait a sec," he added, glancing back to his older sister. "I leave my anime folder in a cabinet in my closet. Why do you know what's in it?"

His sister grinned. "I have to do something when you're not home, and you don't let me bring people back to the apartment."

Minami and Yutaka exchanged glances. "Um..." Yutaka started.

Ryuuko shook his head, and smiled. "Yeah, change of subject, shall we? So, how are you two doing? I haven't really talked to you much since that weekend."

Yutaka grinned, happy for the change of subject. "We're doing ok. It's just hard to get some time alone. Something always seems to get in the way. But we were able to take some time to ourselves this morning, before Patty-chan and Tamura-chan picked us up. It could be a lot more difficult, but both our families have been really supportive."

"That's good. Izumiya-chan told me that you guys had concerns about it. I'm glad to see that you've had a chance put those concerns to rest. Speaking of concerns, Kagami-sama," Ryuuko added, turning to the twin-tailed girl.

She raised a hand to quiet him. "I know where this is going. And it's been good for the most part. I still haven't told my family about it, but I think they know already. Like Yutaka-san said, Konata's family is really supportive, which kind of surprised me. I know how protective her father is of her, but he's been really decent about it."

"That's most likely because he approves of my dating a proper lady," said an overconfident voice from behind them. They looked up to see Konata standing there, in a rather form-fitting blue jumpsuit, with her hair done in a curl, and holding a tray with their drink orders. "I'm confident that his approval is dependent purely on the fact that he doesn't have to fend off any boys from me. It helps that he knows Kagami-san very well now, anyway."

Ryuuko and Shiki gave appreciative smiles. "Excellent, Izumiya-chan. You make a great Lumiere."

A small smile crept across Kagami's lips. "She may be short, socially nearsighted, and has a one track mind when it comes to anime and manga," she teased, and Konata looked ready to complain. "But she's passionate about what matters to her, and she's good at most everything she actually puts effort towards. And she's come from a family that shows a lot of compassion, and she's picked up on quite a bit of it. The only things we argue about are the usual topics that we'd get on each other for before we started dating." Her expression brightened as she spoke, and she started to blush slightly.

Konata returned the expression, but Ryuuko just copied Konata's typical catty grin. "Aw, Kagami-sama is getting all dere-dere on us. How awesome."

The tsundere-in-denial blushed deeper, but for a much deeper reason. "Hey, hold on a second! That's not what this is about!"

Both Konata and Ryuuko gave a fake pout. "How regretful," Konata sighed. "A lady should conduct herself accordingly, Kagami-san." But Kagami didn't miss the grin she was wearing.

"Whatever. Just get back to work, you tease," Kagami groaned, waving her girlfriend away.

"Of course, right away," the blue-haired otaku grinned, stepping away.

After a few minutes, the group had gone through a few rounds of drinks, and had settled in with their snacks. At which point, Patricia approached the table, in a similar, but bright red outfit, and her hair combed straight out. "Welcome, guys! Looks like you're all having a good time. How's it hanging?"

Minami and Yutaka looked slightly confused, but the rest of the table just kind of shrugged it off. "And here we have Eclair," stated Hiyori, gesturing to Patricia and sounding much like a museum tour guide. "How's it going, Patty-chan?"

The blonde grinned, and stepped out of character for a moment. "It's going well. We don't often get a chance to do sci-fi animne like this, so the costumes are fun, even if they're a little tight," she commented. "But anyway, Kona-chan and I will be doing our duet soon, so stick around and have some fun!" She gave the group a smile, as her eyes lingered slightly on Ryuuko, before she stepped away to another table to take their order.

Koji sighed, staring at his younger brother. "Sometimes I really can't stand you, man."

Ryuuko started. "Hey, it's not my fault. Eat your damn noodles," he snapped, taking a slurp of his own dish. "Hey, you know what I noticed?" he asked the table at large.

"What's that?" Minami asked.

"Why is it, when someone comes across a menu with a bunch of things they've never tried before, they usually go for something that has a nice sounding name, or is named for something they like? Or how you hear the name of something, but don't actually know what kind of dish it is, but you want to try it anyway, just because you like the name?"

Yutaka nodded vigorously. "Oh, I know what you mean! The first time I ever tried kitsune udon, I only tasted it because I thought foxes were really cute, so I thought the noodles might have a cute taste to them or something!"

Ryuuko grinned. "Actually, that was exactly what brought it up. I've never had kitsune udon, but they have it as an option. Is it any good?"

Yutaka nodded. "Mm-hm! I really like it! Why didn't you order it first, Ryuuko-san?"

"Because I'm a sucker for miso ramen. If they have it on the menu at any restaurant that serves noodles, I don't get anything else," he explained.

Shiki just shook her head. "You've always been like that. Passing up everything on the menu that you haven't tried, and only going for the one or two things you already know you like."

Kagami shrugged, "I'm not surprised. A lot of people do it that way. But I would picture you as a more adventurous person, Ryuuko-kun."

"Actually," Koji interjected, "That's my fault. At least when it comes to food. I kept getting him to try really weird stuff as a kid, and sometimes putting extra stuff in his food, just to mess with him. So now he plays it safe with anything he eats."

Minami nodded. "I'm not very adventurous with my food, either. My mom enjoys cooking, but she usually only does the same few dishes. It's one of those subtle comforts that comes from doing the same thing every day."

Ryuuko nodded. "Yup. And when you've lived by yourself for any length of time, and need to spend your own money on food, you get used to buying the same things, so that you don't end up buying something you might not like, and wasting money."

Yutaka thought about that for a bit. "I guess it's easier to be adventurous with certain things when it doesn't cost you any money, otherwise you don't want to risk it."

The group nodded in agreement, but before anyone could say anything else, the lights dimmed, and a spotlight shone on the front stage. There stood Konata and Patricia, dressed as Kiddy Grade's star characters, as they took off singing the main theme.

After a few lines, most of the table was full into the song, clapping along with the beat. Shiki and Hiyori were even singing along. "These guys are good," Ryuuko whispered.

Kagami nodded. "Yeah, the last time I was here, Konata told me that they have a CD out together. It's really something else," she explained in a hushed tone. Ryuuko saw that her glowing smile had returned.

_Well, _he thought to himself. _It looks like our Brigade leader may have found what she was looking for. I'm just glad she didn't have to draw any chalk lines in the grass to do it._

_Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxc_

After the performance, and a few more minutes of hanging out, the two groups decided to head out. "So, Kagami-sama, what are you gonna do?" Ryuuko asked, as his siblings got there stuff together, and said goodbyes to the other girls. "I know you and Izumiya-chan came here together, are you going to wait up for her?"

Kagami nodded. "Yeah. Her dad is coming to pick us up after her shift, and I'm staying over tonight, so that we can go to school together tomorrow. Plus, I have to make sure she has her homework done," she sighed. "Remember how I was talking about how she's really good at pretty much anything she's passionate about?"

"Kinda wishing she'd show some passion for her schoolwork, right?" Ryuuko guessed.

Kagami took on an exhausted expression. "You have no idea. I keep trying to come up with good ideas to get her to study, like trying to convinve her to treat it as training for a quiz game, or something like that, but nothing seems to work on her. It's like she's allergic to studying."

The black haired boy mused on that statement for awhile. "Well, we know she's at least a little capable of seeing the long-term, and working hard over a long period of time for something she really wants, right?"

Kagami nodded. "Yeah, she started this job just so she could save up money for Comiket, at first. Then it just served to fuel her otaku habits."

"Well, I figure the best way to get her to study to get into a good college, is to convince her that college is something worthwhile. Maybe..." he trailed off.

Kagami cocked her head to the side. "What are you thinking, Ryuuko-kun?"

"Not sure yet, but I may have an idea for you to work with by tomorrow. Lemme roll it around in my head for a bit, ok?"

The twin-tailed girl nodded, and started saying goodbye to the other girls, just as Konata came to see them off. "Say, Konata, is there someplace quiet I could sit until it's time for us to leave?"

Konata nodded, and, after saying goodbye to the rest of the group, took Kagami to a room in the back marked Employees Only. Ryuuko turned to his schoolmates. "So, girls, what are you going to do?"

Yutaka smiled, as Minami wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "We're going over to Tamura-chan's house for the afternoon, and my uncle is going to pick me up when he comes here to get onee-san," she explained. "And Minami-chan is getting a ride home from Miyuki-sempai and her mom later on, who spent the day in town for some appointments. Isn't that right, Minami-chan?"

Minami nodded. "Yes, but that's not till later on this evening. I'm not sure what time I'll be getting home. What are you going to do, Ryuuko-sempai?"

"Oh, we're all headed home ourselves," Koji answered for him. "I've got to make sure they get home early, so that I can start heading back myself. I'm going up to the Yasaka household myself tonight, and spending the night there, so that I can head out to Hokkaido early tomorrow. I'm catching a plane from there the day after to go back to America. Looks like you're going to get to move back home this week, Shiki."

His younger sister smiled, and waved it off. "Actually, we don't need to worry about that. Ryuuko offered to let me move in."

"After all that whining when you first got here?" said a high voice from behind them. The group turned to see Patricia approaching them. "I guess she kind of grew on you, after all that?"

Ryuuko nodded, smiling. "Just like a tumor!" he answered cheerfully, which earned him an elbow to the stomach. "D-did I say tumor?" he murmured between coughs. "I meant like a new hairstyle."

Shiki nodded in false sweetness. "I know, it was a simple slip of the tongue."

Koji groaned at them. "Alright, let's get going home, before you beat each other to death with smiles on your faces."

After he coughed a few more times, Ryuuko gained his composure, and said goodbye to the girls. They waved their goodbyes to him, along with a few 'See you tomorrows', and the Ryuosen trio made their exit, but not before Ryuuko and Patricia exchanged glances. He didn't like what he saw.

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

It was much later that evening, back in Ryuuko's apartment. Shiki had stretched herself out on the couch, and Ryuuko had taken a seat in the middle of the floor, picking at his guitar. He had sat down almost as soon as they got home, to write an original piece. It had grown a habit over the last couple of weeks.

Shiki looked up from the comic she was reading. "Hey, bro?"

"Yeah?"

"Why have you been doing nothing but original work? When I first got here, all you would do was practice anime and game songs? It's not for the school festival, right? I thought you said the one at Ryuou High happened later than the one at our old school," she mused, watching with interest as he played a few notes, in lengths longer and longer each time, and wrote them into sheet music as he worked.

"I know all that. It's just... there's been an awful lot of stuff going on lately, and I've felt like I needed a good outlet for it. A lot has changed in not a lot of time, so I kind of wanted to find a good way to express everything that's been going on in my head. A lot of it has been good, but not all of it, and lately it's felt like I've got some kind of storm kicking up in the back of my mind. At first, I tried to find the right song, cruising through all the music I had, hoping something struck a chord, no pun intended."

Shiki sat up a bit, putting the comic aside. "So why the change in pace?"

"Well, lately, it's felt like none of the songs I've found have fit right. All the new lyrics I keep coming up with for pre-made songs, some of them had nothing to do with the original intent of the song, or had diverted from the original intent enough that using the song in the first place didn't really matter. So instead of trying to find one, I felt that starting from scratch would be easier," Ryuuko sighed, trying to pick out the next few notes in the song.

"Well, things have gone pretty well for you lately, right? I mean, you've got a pretty girlfriend, a whole new social circle, you're doing well in school, you've even got your own place, kind of. A lot has happened, yeah, but almost all of it is good, right?" Shiki asked quietly.

Her younger brother stopped for a second, then set the guitar aside, glancing over his shoulder at his sister. "I've also put a teacher in the hospital, tarnished the reputations of several good people, gotten my leg broken, stolen the girlfriend of a guy I've never met, and lost a really good friend to something as stupid as a fangirl crush," he muttered. "It's been a very dramatic few months."

Shiki cast her eyes down for a moment. "Well, that's one hell of a downer. What's with you? You're being really depressing. You were really quiet on the ride home, too. Did something happen today that I missed?"

Ryuuko shrugged. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. It was when we left the cosplay café. I caught a glimpse of Patricia-san on the way out."

"Yeah, what was up with her? Everyone was making a big deal about how she was all hung up on you, but she didn't even really say much when we left. I was expecting her to be all cutesy and stuff, trying to get your attention. What happened? I didn't really see you two talk that much," Shiki leaned her head in her hand, and her elbow on her knee.

"It wasn't really anything either of us said. It's just, when we left, I saw a really depressing look on her face. She was smiling, but it was kind of weak. Kind of like she'd been... I don't know, defeated or something. It wasn't good, I know that," he stood up as he talked, taking his guitar aside, and setting it back on it's stand. He picked up a pen and notebook on his way back, and sat back down on the floor. "It just reminded me of all the stuff that had happened, and I kind of came to the realization on the way home that, every time I got into a fight with someone, or accomplished something lately, that someone had to lose out on something for me to get it. I just don't want to be the reason other people have to wear that expression."

"Well," Shiki murmured. "Yeah. I mean, you get into fights, someone's going to walk away a loser. If you start going out with someone, there are probably a bunch of people who are going to feel like they lost out on the chance to date either of you. I mean, life exists because of conflict. Evolution, creation, even urban society. Everything exists because it beat out something else for that spot in the world. I mean, you were trying to do the right thing the whole time, you should take solace in that."

Her younger brother didn't look convinced, as he scribbled away in his notebook. Shiki sighed, and picked up her comic book again. After a few pages, though, she heard him mutter, "Well, if my big sis thinks so, I guess it's gotta be true."

Even with his back to her, she made sure to hide her smile behind the pages of her book.

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxc

"So, what was with you today, Patty-chan?" Hiyori asked quietly, cradling the phone in her shoulder as she sketched. "You've been acting downtrodden ever since Ryuuko and his family left the café this afternoon."

All she heard over the receiver was a heavy sigh. "I don't know, Hiyorin. I guess after getting all worked up before my shift started, and now, I don't feel like I accomplished anything."

The mangaka put her pencil down, and leaned farther into the phone, as if to hear her friend better. "What do you mean? Your performance was awesome. I thought you guys did really well today."

On the other side of town, Patricia slumped into her bed. "Well, it didn't do anywhere near what I wanted to," she murmured.

Hiyori sighed. "Well, like I said, it could take some time for things to go the route you want, so you should be patient." In all honesty, Hiyori felt a bit exhasperated. She didn't want to say anything to discourage her friend, not after the conversation they'd had this morning. It was a little too close to a fight for comfort. But still, she didn't want to sound too encouraging, lest Patricia get worked up and do something she might regret.

"I thought at least I'd get some kind of reaction out of him from that performance, but the entire time, I was catching glimpses of him as I sang, and..." her voice trailed off, and Hiroyi was concerned that they'd lost the connection, until she heard a sniff.

"Patty-chan? What's wrong?"

"He, he didn't even look at me," she muttered. "The entire time we were singing. He looked at Kona-chan, and you and Yu-chan and Minami-chan, and even talked to Kagami while we were singing. But that entire time, he didn't look at me," she sobbed slightly.

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

It was Monday morning, and almost noone was happy to be back at school. Class started sluggishly, as a heat wave had decided to settle in overnight. It was muggy, and most people weren't in a good mood. Ryuuko settled into his seat, exhausted from another long weekend of slightly crazy events. Glancing around the classroom, he saw that most of the other students, for one reason or another, shared his unpleasant mood. He guessed that most of them were simply displeased with the weather, and having to return to school after what they believed was a well-deserved weekend. A couple choice students, however, he was certain as to their foul moods.

Konata had had to put up with Patricia's less than pleased mood after he'd left the restaurant yesterday, and as a result had become slightly depressed that evening. Having Kagami to hang around with after work had helped her mood, but Kagami as well had been there to witness Patricia's displeased disposition. Not to mention that neither of them had been in much mood to study or copy homework last night, but Kagami had pushed the issue, if only to make sure that her girlfriend's grades hadn't suffered. As a result, they had gone to bed later than they planned, and not for any reasons they would have liked. Waking up to an uncomfortable heat wasn't exactly pleasant, either.

"Alright, listen up, class!" Kuroi-sensei exclaimed to the class. "We've got our senior trip coming up soon, so I want you to put together your teams of four. We're going to be doing quite a bit of sightseeing in Nagoya, so make sure you read up on all the places you want to visit. But don't think that because we have this trip that your homework load is going to get any lighter between now and then. It's the summer, so you can expect a lot to happen. After the trip, we have summer vacation, then the athletic and arts festivals. But for now, let's just get through another school day, shall we?"

After Miyuki led the class in their typical 'Stand, Sit, Bow' routine, Kuroi started pounding facts into their heads. Ryuuko, however, wasn't accomplishing much in the way of fact retention. His slight depression from the night before had withered away somewhat, after some lighthearted conversation with his sister, and a later chat with Ayano over the phone, about how her day with Misao had gone. However, he was still relatively melancholy throughout the first half of the day.

Of course, in his stream of ignoring the teacher, and not really paying attention to anything else, lunchtime arrived much faster than usual, and he made his way over to the other class, to sit with his girlfriend.

He was greeted, however, by a rather grumpy Misao at the door. "Ryuuko-kun! We need to talk!"

Now, his first thought, being approached by his girlfriend's best friend in such an aggressive manner, was that he had done something to upset Ayano, and Misao was coming to her defense. That impression was quickly shattered into little pieces, as Kusakabe followed up with, "What the hell kind of nickname is Misa-ball? That doesn't even make any sense!"

Ryuuko was so taken aback by this derailment in his normal train of thought, that the pure absurdity of it forced a small laugh out of him. Which made room for a few bigger ones. Soon, he was leaning on the doorframe, howling.

Misao's change in expression, had someone been asked to replicate it, would only have been mimicable by the most talented method actor. The slow, yet steady transition from outrage, to shock, to confusion, to indignation, back to outrage was so amazingly choreographed, that Ryuuko couldn't help but be further amused by it. Misao, however, was not. "What's so funny, Ryuosen?"

After a few seconds, and some deep breaths to maintain composure, Ryuuko did his best to compose a convincing argument to convince Misao that the nickname was not intended as an insult, merely a characterized play on words. However, in his current state, the only thing he could think of to say was, "I thought you liked meatballs."

Misao blinked. Once, twice, three times, then realization dawned on her face. "Oh, that's what that's about? Ok, ok, I get it. That's a good one! I like it! I guess I'm gonna have to come up with something clever for you, then!" she exclaimed.

Ryuuko let out a huff of air in amused exasperation. _They're out there, alright, _he thought._ Those people who, when encountering a misunderstanding, will blow it way out of proportion, until someone explains it to them._

A/N: I wanted to end this chapter on a positive note, after some of the depressing stuff that had happened. I'm well aware that there are a lot of issues that were approached slightly unrealistically throughout the story, and I thought having some kind of after-effects on certain people would help even that out.

And no, I have no idea where I came up with Misa-ball. I just know why I thought of it, not where it came from nor where my train of thought was headed when the thought popped into my mind. But I like it. Misa-ball. Try saying it a few times, it's fun. Misa-ball. Misa-ball. Misa-ball.

Ok, I'm done.

Misa-ball.


	16. Chapter 16

1A/N: Ok, it's only fair to warn you guys, but over the next few chapters, there are going to be a few points where you _really_ don't like me. That is, if you're anything like me when it comes to happy ever after stuff.

But I am going somewhere with all of this, so bear with me.

Chapter 16: A day like any other...

"I can't believe this heat!" groaned Misao, slumping over the table.

"Hey, watch it! You almost knocked over my bento," Ryuuko grumbled in response. He shuffled around his lunch a little, and moved everything to his lap. "Ok, slump away, Misa-ball."

"Hey, I just noticed something..." Kusakabe groaned, sitting back up and staring at Ryuuko.

"What's that?" Ayano asked quietly. Up till then, she hadn't said much, choosing to stay out of their exchanges. _They're much like Hiiragi-chan and Misa-chan tend to be..._ she mused to herself.

"You have a tendency to come up with some pretty extraordinary nicknames for your friends, Ryuuko-kun. Why is that?" the fanged girl tagged on the question, just as she helped herself to some more food.

"You're just now noticing this? Sweet jibidus," the boy groaned, choosing not to answer the question. _This'll bug her. If my guess is right..._

"Hey, it's not like that's the kind of thing I usually worry about, so me not paying any attention to it up to now isn't that big a deal, right? Ayano-chan?" Misao looked to her much-quieter-than-usual friend for moral support.

"I guess so," Minegeshi agreed, content to occupy herself with her food.

"That's right. And you use some really weird words some times. Not that moe talk that Shorty uses all the time, but some words I've never heard of. Like jibidus and stuff. What's with that?" Kusakabe pressed, apparently not content to leave her new friend's personality quirks to himself.

Ryuuko sighed. "Ugh, it's too hot to explain this properly, but it'll just bug you all day if I don't, and Haruhi knows you need all the focus you can get. Well, the nickname thing is easy. I have a tendency to forget names when I'm being really formal with someone, and using a nickname that someone else came up with feels a little too fake to me. So, I make a habit of coming up with nicknames that aren't just comfortable to use, but are an accurate reflection of how I view the person. It sets the mood for conversations better, and helps me feel more relaxed socially. Plus, if the person is generally ok with the name itself, it tends to make them more comfortable around me. As you may have noticed, I tend to travel in atypical social circles."

"Yeah, you've got some pretty weird friends, all right. But some of the names you use are kind of bizarre. I guess I just never met anybody before that talks quite the way you do. So, what about you? DO you have some really strange or off-the-wall nickname that other people have for you?" the brunette pried, less-than-subtle in her attempts to dig up something embarrassing on him.

"I've got a couple family nicknames, and what Izumiya-chan calls me, but aside from that, not really," he explained, thinking out loud. "I guess mine's a habit that doesn't really catch on that quickly. Most people don't tend to pick up on new trends or words unless it's particularly funny or amusing to them, so I must not be all that entertaining," he grinned, returning to his meal.

"So what does your family call you?" Misao asked, having packed away what's left of her lunch.

Ryuuko pointed a finger at her. "Oh, no. Nuh-uh. Only my brother and sister use those names, so I don't hand them out to friends," he scolded her, but he was smiling. Then something caught his eye. "Hey, Ayano? Are you ok? You've barely touched your lunch," he said softly, reaching a hand for hers. She jerked away partially, but let his hand rest on hers. The gesture wasn't missed by him. "Um..." he started.

Misao waved it off. "Oh, don't worry about it. There's not much you can do, anyway."

Ryuuko raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Kusakabe grinned. "Well, you two have only been dating for about a month, so it makes sense that you're just addressing this issue now. But she tends to get kind of moody and draws into herself really bad about this time. My brother ran into the same issue, and he couldn't do anything about it, either. Don't worry, it'll pass."

Ryuosen tumbled this around in his head for a bit. "What do you-" Then it hit him. _Oh, geez. I can't believe I almost fell into that old gag._ "Ok, ok, I get it now. So what's the best approach? Try to connect? Or just let her be for a bit? I figure you would know better than anyone," he reasoned, as Misao had raised an eyebrow, as if to say, 'Why ask me?'

"Misao's not the one you should be asking about stuff like that, Ryuuko," said a voice from directly behind him. He leaned his head back to see Kagami standing there, with a bemused expression on her face.

"How do you mean?" he asked, as Kagami took a seat with them. He checked his watch as she sat down, just to make sure he didn't miss the end of lunch.

"Think about it. After all these years, Misao still does stuff to annoy Ayano. She's not exactly the master of pattern recognition. Actually, the only reason she knows why Ayano acts the way she does around this time is because I pointed it out to her a few years back. Up till then, she always thought she was just screwing up every month. She still hasn't figured out the best approach. And don't look at me for answers," she added, cutting off his next question. "Each girl handles it differently. But at least you know what to look for now, so you don't screw up every time it happens., like some people," she added, giving Misao a flat expression.

Kusakabe flinched. "Hey, I'm not that bad!"

"Yes you are," Ayano said quietly, finally finishing up her lunch.

Ryuuko and Kagami had to express a grin, as Misao looked distraught. _I'm really sorry, Ayano, Misa-ball, I know neither of you are really happy right now, but that was amazing! It's so out of character it's funny_,he thought to himself, stifling a laugh. He looked over to Kagami, so as not to seem conspicuous, when she hissed. "Don't look at me," and turned her head rapidly to the side. Ryuuko saw, through the shaking of her shoulders, that she was having similar problems.

As Misao sought out consolation from Ryuuko and Kagami, who did their utmost not to laugh, Ayano glanced around at all of them, and grinned, ever so slightly.

After the two of them had calmed down slightly, Ryuuko turned to Kagami, who could finally make eye contact without laughing. "So, what are you doing over here? Lunch isn't over yet."

Kagami nodded. "I know, but I wanted to ask you, you said you'd had somewhat of an idea to get Konata motivated over college, right? Did you ever work it out?"

The boy nodded, grinning his usual evil grin. "Yes, I did. And I think it'll work pretty well. I think what you should do is-"

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

"And that's what happened with lunch today," Ryuuko explained, glancing around the table. It was after school, and he had retreated to the Animation Research Club, having missed a few days out of the last couple of weeks due to his newfound relationship, and the fact that he didn't really have much more to contribute than his voice for the short animation they were doing, and acting as a cosplay model for some of the artists. Not having really much of anything to do today, either, he had settled on telling stories to the people who had already finished their latest projects, or who couldn't get any farther than they were during club.

"That's got to suck, though," chuckled Kou, as she settled down from laughing along with the others. "It can't be a lot of fun to have your best friend be that blunt with you."

"Nah, she was ok," Ryuuko explained, leaning back in his chair. "After a couple minutes, we changed topics, and she forgot about it completely."

"So, what are you doing here? It's not like we have a whole lot of work for you to do, and I figured you'd be spending all the time you could with Ayano-sempai," asked Hiyori.

"Ah, she has discipline committee, and I kind of got the distinct impression she wanted to be alone after school for a couple days." He glanced over his shoulder as one of the club members tapped him on the back, and then took a doujinshi they had handed him to review. "Yeah, sure," he told them, as they walked back to their desk.

"What do you mean? Where did you get that from?" Yasaka asked, slightly confused. Usually, boys weren't so in tune with a women's desire to be left alone.

Ryuuko shrugged, as he scanned the pages. "She told me. Way I figure it, she probably knew that I'd try and do whatever I could to fix something that wasn't broken, so she decided to give me some up-front advice on the issue. Said she's probably be a little more sociable in a few days. I'm still going to each lunch with her, just to make sure I don't miss anything. Besides, I don't want to make it look like I'm running away."

A few girls nodded sagely at this, as if to say, 'That's probably for the best.' Hiyori had just opened her mouth to say something, when Ryuuko jumped slightly in his seat, and started blushing furiously.

"Whoa..." he said slowly, seemingly glued to the page. He turned it, slowly, as a dreamy expression washed over his face. Before the page finished it's journey from cover to cover, however, it was snatched out of his hand.

The girl who had handed it to him in the first place was blushing almost as deeply as he was, and stammered quickly, "Ohmygod, I'm so sorry! Th-that wasn't the one you were supposed to review! Oh, jeez, this is so embarrassing! Here's the real one!" she exclaimed, thrusting a book into his hands.

Still blushing, but grinning slightly, Ryuuko got a mischievous glint in his eye. "Oh, Suzuka-san, you're so forceful," he all but whispered, glancing away. "All you had to do was ask, you know I'd do any-"

"Ohmygod, that's not fair stop it stopitstopit!" the green haired girl said frantically, shaking her head. Blushing, she hurried over to the other side of the room.

The color returning to normal in his face, Ryuuko looked up to the rest of the table, grinning evilly. "I also missed messing with the kouhais. They're so easy to tease," he chuckled, then glanced over to Hiyori. "Hiyori, are you ok?" he asked, shaking her shoulder. The girl hadn't moved an inch, and seemed to have a naughty grin stuck on her face.

"Oh, she's fine. But I wouldn't mess with her, she's probably thinking something worse than you are," Yasaka explained, and a couple girls nearby nodded. "It doesn't help that sometimes you can be purely evil, Ryuo-kun."

He kept grinning. "Oh, I know. I'd be much worse if I could, but that kind of evilness could constitute harassment, at least to some degree, and I'd rather stay out of trouble. Plus, if the wrong people saw, they'd get the wrong impression entirely, and I have a girlfriend I'd much rather it not get back to."

Tamura blinked a little, returning to the conversation, and at the same time, reality. "What kinds of worse?" she asked, not so subtly fishing for ideas.

Ryuuko decided to play along. "Oh, just little things. I can think of a dozen ways to tease one fangirl, let alone a room full of them. I watch a lot of the same animes you girls do, and I know the kinds of scenes they make those shows for. Plus, I seem to have some kind of character image at this school, so it's a little more effective than normal. Of course, if I did, my personal fangirl problems would only get worse, and that just leads me back to my first problem. Giving people the wrong impression. I don't exactly want to be known as a womanizing d-bag, after all."

"I think it's a little too late for you, Ryuuko," say a shrill voice from the doorway. Ryuuko flinched slightly, not wanting to turn around. The expression on his friend's faces confirmed his suspicions, anyway. "Well,a re you going to turn and face me, Ryuosen?"

"I would, but my optometrist said I shouldn't strain my eyes too much. I'm sure unspeakable horror counts as strenuous," he chided, leafing through the other book Suzuka had handed him, if only to have something better to do than to talk to the new arrival.

"Why, you..." Sakura grumbled, clenching her fists. She made to storm into the room, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. Ryuuko turned around to see the source of the quiet, only to finally notice her two friends

"Aw, dammit, I forgot about the minions," he muttered, dropping the book on the table, and scooting out of his chair. Sakura glared at him as he approached. He stopped a few feet in front of them, and said quietly, "Look, if you've got something to sday to me, let's take this into the hall, ok? I'd really rather not deal with you right now, but if I have to, then I'd rather do it on the other side of the door," he groaned

The three girls nodded, and took a few steps into the hall. Ryuuko took a step after them, then quickly doubled back, slamming and locking the door behind them. He gestured to a girl at the other end of the clubroom to get the door on the far end, and she launched out of her seat to close and lock it, too. _Hey, cool, I have minions, too,_ he thought to himself, returning to his seat.

Kou blinked a couple of times. "What the hell was that? That was awesome!"

"Nah, I just really don't like those three, especially Sakura. She's been giving me crap ever since that night at my uncle's house," he groaned, returning to the comic he was supposed to be reviewing. He found himself liking the first one much better, this was kind of bland.

"So whatever happened from that? Most of the updates I get socially come from Hiyori over here. A lot of stuff happened that I never saw the end result of. Did that Izumi girl ever try out for the track team?"

Ryuuko shook his head. "Nope. She made some excuse about how completing any of the dares would be pointless at that point, as she had already lost. Misa-ball got a little miffed, but forgot about it the next day. Girl has a mind like a steel trap. Rusty and illegal in most places."

Tamura chuckled. "Oh, hey, Kaichou, what happened with Kenji? Where is he now?"

Ryuuko's ears perked, and he leaned on the table. "Yeah, how is the bugger? Haven't heard from him since, although Shiki tells me she's talked to him a couple of times."

Yasaka shrugged. "He's not bad. Living in the city, like he said, and I think he's working construction somewhere. He doesn't call home much, you know how he is."

The black haired teen nodded. "Oh, definitely. Guy doesn't know how to keep in touch to save his life. If he ever keels over, we won't know till the family lawyer swings by with his last will and testament. But anyway, have these girls been bugging you often? I haven't been around the club much lately, so I don't really know, but have they been causing you any problems?"

The blonde girl waved it off. "A little, but nothing new. Just her usual anti-otaku tirade. But that's losing steam quickly, what with the rising surge of anime fans at school. Of course, she's not really popular right now, since your fanbase is kind of growing, and they view her as some kind of enemy."

Ryuuko's head hit the table. "Growing? Oh, jibidus. That's just what I need. More letters."

Hiyori raised an eyebrow. "You still get letters?"

"Almost every day," he explained. "I've dedicated a pocket in my bag to them, and have a large box in my room I keep them in. Takes me about an hour every evening to read through them."

Kou blinked. "You actually read all of those?"

"Why not? They obviously cared enough to write them out, why shouldn't I take the time to respect that? Shiki suggested that I actually respond to all of them, if only to tell them no. Now _that_ is time I do not have. Besides, only very rarely do I get a letter asking me to meet them somewhere. Those I respond to, if only because I know how much it sucks to stand someplace all night waiting for a response that's never going to come. Tears a hole in you, it does," he explained. A few girls in the room had turned to look at him, some of them dewy-eyed. "Of course," he added, somewhat hastily, "If I got a bunch of letters asking me to meet them in person, I'd have no choice but to leave a lot of them standing. There's no way I could take time out for a lot of meetings, and people tend to choose about the same time after school, so standing some of them up would be inevitable. I'd feel horrible."

Tamura nodded. "That sounds about right. That'd be way to much work for one person, anyway. SO what do most of the letters say, anyway? If they're not all requests to meet you in person."

Ryuuko grinned. "It varies. Some of them are kind of basic, if heartfelt. Not everyone is a poet. Some are really beautiful, actual poetry or songs, stuff like that. I've actually made a large notebook that I keep those in, and I read it every once in awhile," he mused softly, then motioned for Hiyori and Kou to scoot in, as he whispered. "And some of them are kind of intense. Talking about stuff they'd like to do, you know what I mean. I have a separate folder for those," he smirked, and Hiyori turned beet red.

Yasaka smirked. "I'm guessing that's where you get a lot of your ideas for all those 'evil things' you could do to tease people?"

Ryuosen just kept grinning. "You have no idea. And I thought Hiyori's comics were intense."

The young mangaka swayed back and forth, ideas rich in her head.

About the same time, at the Izumi residence...

"Hey, Konata!" Mr. Izumi shouted from the kitchen. "What do you and Hiiragi-san want for dinner?"

"Whatever you want, dad! Something with noodles!" came the response from Konata's room. Konata rolled her pencil across the desk lazily, as she stared at the notebook in front of her.

Kagami huffed quietly. "You know, I know I've told you this a million times, but if you don't keep your studies up, you'll never get to college."

Konata flopped back onto the floor, staring at the ceiling. "But who says I even want to go to college? There are a bunch of jobs I could get without a degree. And besides, if I don't worry about college, than I don't have to spend all that time studying for college entrance exams, and I could game my heart out!"

Kagami opened her mouth to counter, then remembered the conversation she and Ryuuko had had earlier that day. "But, Konata, I was kind of hoping, if you did well enough on your tests, that we might end up going to college together," she said, slightly offhandedly. Ryuuko had advised her to act embarrassed, which was easy. Saying what he'd told her to say proved embarrassing enough."Don't you want to spend more time together after we graduate?"

"But you're going to a pre-law school, right? I have no interest in being a lawyer," Konata stated flatly.

Kagami grimaced, but the black-haired boy spoke in the back of her mind: _"Just remember, you have to have a solid argument for everything._ _And make sure to put some of that awesome dere-dere-ness to work. She's going to eat that right up."_ Quietly scolding him for calling her a tsundere, she pressed, "Yeah, but there are a lot of jobs that you can get with a law degree, not just being an attorney. And besides," she muttered, her cheeks growing red. Why did he have to give her such cheesy lines to use? "Besides, Konata, I'd... I'd miss having you copy my work all the time..."

Konata's ahoge twitched slightly, as she sat up quickly. "Oho, is my Kagamin going to miss me after we graduate? Don't worry, I can always come over to your place when you get lonely," she teased.

Kagami made to scold her on reflex, but held back, still trying to win her point. "I was thinking, too, that if we both had similar degrees, we could go into business together. I-I've been thinking a lot about it, lately."

Konata raised an eyebrow. "Really? Like how?"

"Well, we've been going out for almost a year, and I've been thinking about what I... we would be doing down the road. Where we'd live, what we'd do on weekends, where we would work, that kind of thing. Haven't you?" she asked quietly.

Konata waved a hand. "Nah, I've just been trying to get as much enjoyment out of it as I can, while I still can."

Kagami blinked. "What do you mean, 'while you still can?'"

Konata grinned sheepishly. "It's not that big a deal. I just know this isn't going to last very long. Let's face it, Kagami, even though our friends are ok with it, most of Japan is still on edge, if not completely against homosexuality. I mean, do you really think you'd be able to keep a job as a lawyer if people found out you were gay, or even bisexual? They'd probably throw you out on the street, and even if they didn't, they'd make your job a lot harder."

Kagami was getting slightly upset, now. "So what are you saying? That liking girls is a bad thing? That's kind of hypocritical," she huffed.

"It's not that, Kagami. There's nothing wrong with liking girls, we both know that. But the whole of Japan doesn't see it that way. And besides, even if we stayed together past high school, and even past college, we can't get married in this country. And having kids would be hard on both of us. I'm a lot like my mom, so having a baby in vitro would be out of the question for me. I don't know what it would be like for you, but that's just another thing that we'd have problems with. If we ever got that far, can you imagine what our kid would go through, having two moms?" Konata explained.

Kagami felt livid. "So what? It's not worth all that work to try to be happy together? You're just going to give up like that? Or did you go into ths relationship expecting it to crash and burn when we graduated?"

Konata waved her hands frantically. "That's not it at all, Kagamin! I just want to make sure you have a future ahead of you! You're much better prepared for your life than I am for mine! You don't need me dragging you down later on."

"No," Hiiragi agreed quietly. "I don't. What I need is someone who's going to love and support me despite all of the hardship! I don't need someone who's going to roll over at the first sign of trouble!" she barked, and Konata flinched drastically. Standing up and collecting her things, Kagami made a quick exit out of the room, and stomped into the kitchen.

"Hiiragi-san? What's wrong?" Soichiro asked.

"Mr. Izumi, can you take me home?" Kagami responded quietly. Konata's dad nodded, and walked her to the door without a word. Konata ran into the hall after her.

"Kagamin, wait! Let's talk about this!" she shouted.

Kagami just hissed over her shoulder. "Look, Konata. If we're not in this for the long haul, I don't think I want to be in it at all. Goodbye," she muttered, stepping outside.

The front door to the Izumi residence closed on a very sad, very alone, Konata.

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxc

It was a slightly sunny, and rather warm afternoon at Ryuou High. The sun was bright, and the heat wave had lowered to a pleasant simmer. It was a quiet Tuesday afternoon, and most everyone had gone home.

Except, of course, for a few choice students, in a room where the atmosphere could not have been colder.

"Ex-excuse me?" Ryuuko stammered, hushed.

"I think we should break up," Ayano repeated calmly. Misao stood a few feet away from her, glancing back and forth between the two.

Ryuuko blinked a few times. "O-ok, you're going to have to run this by me in detail. Is this going to be an on-again-off-again thing? Am I going to turn around, and it's Friday, and you want to get back together again?" he smiled weakly, hoping for a response he could work with.

Ayano shook her head. "I'm sorry, Ryuuko. But it's Kusakabe-kun. Not her," she added, as Ryuuko was halfway through shooting Misao a harsh glare. "Her older brother."

"I thought you'd dumped him? Wasn't he giving you a bunch of pressure about your relationship?" Misao interjected, before Ryuuko could retort.

"Yes, he was," Ayano agreed. "But I ran into him on Sunday afternoon, after you and I had parted ways. He gave me a call, and asked to meet me somewhere. He'd sounded a little odd, so I agreed. I wanted to make sure he was ok, at least. So we sat down in a café, and talked almost all afternoon. He spent most of the time apologizing about everything that had gone wrong, and had agreed to give apologies to Hiiragi-chan and Izumi-chan for the rude things he'd said about them, even if they weren't there to hear it. He seemed very upset, as was very sincere about his feelings. He'd asked me if we could try again, and I told him I'd think about it. And I did, all day yesterday. I couldn't stop thinking about it. And last night, I called him up, and agreed to get back together with him.

Ryuuko seemed to have frozen to the spot. A very large expanse of nothing had appeared in it's chest when she started, and at the end, he felt as if he'd already drifted into the void, like he was watching some kind of sad dream. "So... so what about the last few weeks we had together? Did that... I mean, didn't you..."

Ayano approached him, and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Ryuuko, I did have fun, but I had to be honest with myself. I still have feelings for him, and we've been together for a long time. It was a lot of fun, but He and I had already made a bunch of plans for the future. And I just don't see that with any of you. I need to start looking long-term. And Let's be honest, I don't even think you know what you want to do with the rest of your life. I need someone who does. But don't worry, he's going to take good care of me. I'll make sure of that. I won't let him treat me like he did. It's going to be ok, you know?"

Ryuuko's head snapped up, and he stared her hard in the eyes. "No, I don't," he snapped, in a low, growling voice. Before she had time to respond, he'd snatched his bag, and charged out of the room. He wasn't sure where he was going, he just needed to walk somewhere.

After a few minutes of indignant marching, he found himself on the roof. And to his surprise, he wasn't alone. "Kagami?"

The twin-tailed girl looked up from the corner she had scooted herself into, but didn't respond

Having burned off a little of the heat in his head with marching, he'd decided to put some of his personal issues aside. The girl looked like she had it about as bad as he did. He didn't think she needed someone venting to her. So he took a eat a few feet away from her, and gave her what he hoped was a soft look. "What's wrong? You've been out of it all day. Nobody could find you at lunch, and Tsukasa and Konata both looked really upset. Did something happen?"

Kagami stayed silent, shaking her head, and pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her head on them. He could tell by the way she was shaking that she was crying rather hard, if rather quietly.

Ryuuko wasn't sure why, but he'd felt it was the best thing to do at the time, so he got up, at least partially, and made his way over to her side, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. She pulled away slightly, but he kept hold, and eventually, she broke down into audible sobs, clutching the fabrid of his shirt, and stainging his uniform with tears.

"Talk to me."

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

A/N: Ok, I know you guys are kind of upset, but this is all going somewhere, even if it takes a chapter or two to get there. In all honesty, this did suck to write, especially at 4 in the morning. I await the storm of unhappy reviews.


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: I just read through most of my story, just to make sure I'm keeping things in continuity, and I realized something: I have a crap ton of typos. Obscene amounts. It's ridiculous.

Anyway, back to the story.

Chapter 17: Why is it so hot, and who put me in this damn hand basket?

A loud ringing noise. Ryuuko had been made aware of a loud ringing noise. Close by. Somehow familiar. But it was so dark. He didn't want to open his eyes to see where he was. He already knew.

"Ryuuko, get your ass out of bed! I'm not going to say it twice!" barked a slightly shrill, distinctly feminine voice. "We got shit to do today, so man up and roll your ass awake!"

Slamming his hand down on the top of his alarm clock, and buying himself some sweet reprieve from noise, the teenage boy slowly drug himself to his feet, and shuffled about his room, making sure he made a distinguishable amount of noise himself, so as to let Shiki know he'd gotten up. Of course, if he had his way, he'd still be in bed. For several days in a row. He half-heartedly tossed some clothes around in his dresser, looking for anything that could pass as a matching outfit. Settling on a white button-down short sleeve, a black undershirt, and a pair of black slacks, his melancholy levels of mobility carried him into the shower, where, after walking through all the necessary steps of cleaning himself, he stood for several minutes, leaning against a tile wall as hot water slow-roasted his skin. It felt good, to just stand there and cook slightly.

Until his older sister banged on the door. "Listen, Ryuuko, I'm not dragging around an emo kid all day! We both decided to get out and get stuff done, and you can't afford to be downtrodden all day!"

"That's why I'm getting it out of the way now!" he shouted back. Leaning into the showerhead and taking a blast of hot water to his face and scalp, he climbed out of the shower, shut the water off, and shook himself as dry as possible. If only to have something to pump his blood a little. Shiki was right, they had a great deal to do today. Having been dumped by Ayano over a week ago, he had spent a few days just letting himself trudge through life. His sister, however, wouldn't let him carry that on for too long.

'I understand wallowing, lord knows I've done it before, but you've gotta start focusing again. If you let your grades drop, mom and dad are going to drag you back home,' she had explained. And she was right. So they had decided on a plan of action. Instead of letting himself sit at home every afternoon, depressed and brooding, he had decided to get a part-time job. Along with several other tasks they had set aside for today, to keep him busy, his sister had volunteered to go job-hunting with him. 'If I can get myself a job, chances are I can get you one, too. Especially if you're putting forth an effort.'

So, having settled in some resolve to accomplish something, he dried himself the rest of the way with a towel, and threw on his outfit. He was making some adjustments in the mirror, when something occurred to him. "Hey, Shiki?" he shouted through the door.

"Yeah?"

"Can we hit the hair salon? I need a haircut," he explained, as he worked a comb through his mane-esque black hair. In the time he'd been at Ryuou, his hair had grown past his shoulders.

He was halfway through tying it back with a hair band when the bathroom door blasted open, Shiki rushing in. "No! Hell no! You leave those beautiful ebony locks alone!"

Ryuuko blinked a couple times. "Um, please tell me you didn't say what I think you said," he pleaded half-heartedly.

Shiki shook her head rapidly. "Absolutely not! I won't let you cut your hair! No, no, no!"

"Um, I do get a say in this, right? And besides, what do you care what I look like? You're a lesbian, a guy's appearance shouldn't matter to you," he rationalized. Yet, as he spoke, a thought dawned on him. "Please tell me the reason you want me to keep my hair long isn't because it makes me look more feminine," he groaned.

Shiki flinched, and grinned weakly, glancing off to the side. "What are you talking about? Of course not! I just think that it makes you more popular with girls, so you shouldn't throw it away that quickly…" she trailed off.

Ryuuko gave her a flat stare. "Ok, yeah. I'm cutting it off. If it makes me less popular with girls, and erases the mental image of you wondering what I would look like if I was a girl-"

She blushed hard, and threw up her hands defensively. "I never said anything like that!" She yelped, waving her arms in slight panic.

"Yeah, it goes away now. Buh-bye," he muttered, escorting her out of the bathroom. He thumped his head against the door once it was closed. "Today is going to be looong…"

Xcxcxcxcxcxcxc

"Where the hell is she?" Shiki grumbled, slowly picking at her meal. They had gone out to breakfast, to make sure both of them had full stomachs to work on. "She said she'd meet us here."

Her younger brother sighed heavily. "A long day indeed," he said under his breath. Shiki gave him a look, then went back to her food. "Relax, she'll be here. We got to the restaurant like a half hour early, remember? Besides, Kagami's one of the most punctual people I know. And she's just on board with this whole 'keep us busy to keep us from being emo' thing as you are," he reminded her. They had agreed to meet the elder Hiiragi twin for breakfast, as the three of them had similar goals.

At first, when Ryuuko and Kagami had explained each other's situations to the other, he had thought that they might be able to help each other deal with the issue of losing a relationship. Of course, they only served to help make the other person more depressed, at least until Shiki stepped in, and started giving them direction. She had even gone so far as to call the Hiiragi household, and get her family to light a fire under her feet, so that she'd get out of the house. The end result was the two of them, led by his older sister, looking for jobs and doing as much as possible to avoid thinking about the issue, and move forward. So they'd come up with this plan.

A slight flutter of lilac hair drew his attention to the door, as the girl they were waiting for stepped into the room. "Kagami-chan! Over here!" he exclaimed, waving a hand to get her attention. Shiki raised an eyebrow, and turned to wave the girl over to their booth. She waved back, and hustled across the room.

"Were you guys waiting long?" Kagami asked, slipping into the booth next to Ryuuko.

"Only forev-" Shiki started, only to be interrupted by a swift boot to her shin. "Ow, hey!" she exclaimed, then sighed, waving off the question. "No, we just got here early, so we've had time to eat. I'm just not feeling this food," she grumbled.

Ryuuko smirked. "Really? Cause you've been molesting it with a fork all-OW." he growled, glaring at his sister. Kagami shook her head.

"You guys are like my older siblings. They give each other crap all the time. So, anyway, what's the plan for today?" she asked, slightly more cheerful than Ryuuko would have expected. He got the impression she was putting on a front, but didn't say anything. He was having difficulties doing the same thing, himself.

"Well, we're going downtown, to get Ryuuko signed up for driving lessons. It's about time I stopped carting him everywhere. Then, there's a job resource center near the driving school, so I'm taking you both there, and walking you through the motions. It's how I got my first gig," she explained, as her younger brother gave her a quizzical look.

He nodded. "That makes sense. You had me under the impression you'd done it under your own power," he mocked slightly. She glared at him over a forkful of food. "Anyway, was there anything you wanted to get out of the way today, Kagami-chan?"

"Ok, stop right there," Shiki said flatly, staring him down. "Since when the hell do you call her Kagami-chan. It was always Kagami-sama, or, every once in a while, Kagamin."

Kagami's eyes cast down, as the fake smile she's put on started to falter. "Way to go, Shiki. I was using a different nickname, because those are both ones Konata used. Besides, it shouldn't be anything you worry about, we've got other stuff to do today," Ryuuko grumbled.

Shiki's eyes widened. "Oh… oh, I'm sorry, Hiiragi-san, I didn't-"

Kagami shook her head, as her falsely cheerful smile was replaced by a more somber, smaller one. "No, it's ok. I'm just still getting used to the little nuances of it all, that's all. It's not your fault. It's been a hell of a week," she finished, as a waiter showed up with a glass of water. She drained half of it in a second, then pointed out something on the menu, and the waiter nodded, took it from her, and walked away.

Ryuuko nodded sagely. He had barely spoken to Ayano, and Kagami and Konata weren't talking. If not for the fact that Kagami and Ryuuko had taken to eating lunch in the cafeteria, the classrooms would be very awkward once a day. It didn't help that Konata expected Ryuuko to side with her, and Ayano was looking for Kagami's support. They had both decided that the easiest route was to step away from the group a little bit every day, and cool off. Which is what got them here in the first place.

"Ok, like I said, what else did you want to do today?" he asked again. "I was thinking, after we do the driving and job stuff, we could hit the salon. I need to get a haircut, it's getting way to.." he trailed off, having noticed Kagami's reaction. She had stopped mid-sip of her water, and was staring at him wide eyed.

"Wh-wh-why would you want to do that?" she stammered quietly, forcing a smile.

Ryuuko's head slumped to his chest. "Please tell me this isn't going to be one of those things, is it?"

Kagami put down her glass. "What do you mean? I was just thinking, it looks good the way it is. No need to waste your money on that," she stated simply, re-composing herself. "And anyway, with all the time we're going to spend hunting for jobs, signing up for classes, you might not have time to do it."

Ryuuko shook his head. "What is it with you two? Why shouldn't I get my haircut? It doesn't look anywhere near professional, and if I'm going to get a job, I need to look the part."

Kagami's eyes shifted slightly. "Well, Konata got a job just fine, and her haircut didn't change," she reasoned.

"That's because hairstyle expectations are much different for girls and guys. Plus, the _cosplay cafe_ that hired her has much more lax standards about that kind of thing. It isn't exactly Business casual there," he countered, pointing a fork at her.

She was about to respond, when her food arrived, and she became occupied with her meal. Ryuuko let it rest, even though he was pretty sure he knew what her real reasons were.

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcx

"So, how far out of the way is this job search helper place thingy?" Ryuuko asked, relaxing from his meal by reclining the front seat until he could stretch out. Shiki gave him a sideways glare as she drove.

"We _just_ left the restaurant, are you really that impatient?" she grumbled.

He chuckled to himself. "Not really, I just wanted to know how long I had to take a nap before we got there."

"You slept in this morning!" she exclaimed.

Kagami leaned forward in her seat to join the conversation. "I wouldn't worry about it. He's like Tsukasa; she takes any opportunity she can to relax, even when she's studying. She falls asleep in the car all the time."

Ryuuko shook his head. "Yeah, but at least my GPA is decent. I saw her latest test scores; is she still having problems studying?"

Kagami sighed. "I have no idea what to do. Her heart's in the right place, and she keeps coming to me for help or tips on studying or not falling asleep. But her habits are so deeply ingrained that I'm worried she won't grow out of them in time to take college seriously."

Ryuuko leaned on an elbow to sit up. "Isn't she going to study to be a chef? I hear she's really on the ball when she's in the kitchen. I think she just needs to find an approach that works for her. Or maybe she should have taken a course route that agreed with her more in the first place?"

The elder Hiiragi twin adopted a flat expression. "Yeah, she should have. I'm not sure what possessed her to take the academic course she did, if it's just going to be trouble for her. Hey, how do you do it?"

"Hmm?" he asked offhandedly. He had returned to stretching out in his seat.

"You and Tsukasa have similar habits when it comes to things you don't like to do, even if you are a bit more level-headed. But your grades are at least more than tolerable, if not great," Kagami mused.

Ryuuko gave her a look. "Yeah, thanks. Glad you approve."

"But seriously, how do you handle studying? I imagine you as the kind of person who delves straight into their hobbies as soon as they get home," she continued, ignoring his sarcasm.

It was Shiki's turn to answer for him. "That's because he has motivation. Do you really think our parents would let him stay out here if he couldn't hold his grades up? He has to keep a certain GPA or he's getting dragged back home. He's as close to an exchange student as you get without leaving the country. If he slips up a little, they're not entirely bullheaded. They have this whole system planned out on how to judge his grades. So even if he's normally the kind of person who'd ditch their studies to do something fun, his lifestyle depends on him hitting the books on a regular basis."

Ryuuko rolled his eyes. "Yeah, it's not exactly my favorite thing in the world, but I learned early on to compromise what I like with what's expected of me. My mom's always been a big academic, and my dad believes in discipline. And before you ask about my older siblings, remember that I'm only their _half_-brother."

His older sister glared daggers at him. "I _can_ turn this car around."

"Not in the middle of the freeway, you can't."

Kagami groaned to herself. "It's so much like how my older sisters act it's uncanny."

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxc

Hiyori shook her head violently. "No, no, no!" she declared to herself. "This still isn't right! How am I ever going to turn this story in if I can't even get a good idea for a plot. She glared fiercely at the notepad in front of her, full of scratched out ideas and half-hearted sketches. Heaving a sigh, she leaned her head back, and stared at the clouds. Well, cloud. It was relatively sunny. "I thought that dragging myself out here in the middle of the morning would get me some great ideas, but everything is so boring! Nobody does anything like the people in anime and manga, it's so dull!"

She shook her hands in mock rage at the sky, and then slumped further into the bench she'd commandeered for the morning. Having dragged herself all the way to downtown to watch the large mecca of people ebbing to and fro throughout the different phases of everyday life, she was severely disappointed with the lack of ideas that had made themselves known. At least, until she heard a rather familiar male voice ring across the intersection.

"Of course I remembered! I just... I forgot where I put it, ok!" Her head slowly rotated, as she looked across to see a slightly agitated Ryuuko staring down into the trunk of a car. She was about to get up and say hello, when he slammed the hood down. Although, that wasn't what stopped her.

Just as the trunk slammed, a familiar face, with very unique twintails, stepped out of the car, and closed the door. "Jeez, you really are one of those kinds of people who can't survive without a girl or two to look after you, huh?" She commented, although Hiyori couldn't see her face, it was unmistakable who the girl was.

"What are Ryuuko-sempai and Hiiragi-sempai doing together? And why all the way out here?" Hiyori muttered to herself. "There's probably some completely rational explanation for it." the mangaka assured herself. Although, given her penchant for exaggerating situations, a wild, completely unrealistic scenario had already played itself out in her head.

_Hiyori Tamura Moe-vision:_

"Of course I remembered, I just... I forgot where I put it, ok?" Ryuuko grumbled, blushing slightly. He rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

Kagami chuckled. "Jeez, you really are one of those kinds of people who can't survive without a girl or two to look after you, huh?" she teased. Her face was deadpan, but there was a small, barely noticeable spring in her step as she made her way around the car to join Ryuuko in searching the trunk. After some time, she picked what it was out of the pile of junk in the back of the vehicle, and reached up to close the trunk door. Her hand brushed Ryuuko's as he reached to do the same.

"Hey, don't...don't stand so close, ok?" she said quickly, as she turned her head to the side.

"Oh, come on. It's not like anyone we know is all the way out here. We came all this way to take a day to ourselves, right?" Ryuuko grinned, brushing his hand against the back of hers. She flinched her hand away slightly, but let it drop to her side, and allowed him to take it in his.

"Just, just don't forget stuff like this, ok?" she snapped, although she was blushing. She snatched up the picnic basket they'd packed for the day, and the two of them walked off.

_Back in Reality:_

"Ryuuko, we're not going to find your driver's ed book in this mess. Don't you clean out the car every once in a while?" Kagami snapped, tapping her foot. "Every time I think you might be better than some people I know, something like this crops up." Her expression was a flat, snide grin.

The Ryuosen boy raised an eyebrow. "Like you're any better. At least you don't have to go back for another copy later today." He grinned as her ears turned red. Snapping the car door shut behind her, he leaned into the window. "Ok, sis, we're going to hang out here for a bit, so give us a call when you're ready to come get us, ok?"

Shiki nodded, more focusing on the radio than anything else. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just don't go wandering somewhere weird. I've heard stories about some of the places in this part of town, ok?"

As she drove off, and Ryuuko waved her goodbye, Kagami had a thought. "Um, what kinds of stories is she talking about?" she muttered.

The black haired teen grinned. "Probably stuff she herself is responsible for. Ignore it, anyway, we've got a basic gameplan, right? We should be fine."

The elder Hiiragi twin flinched. "That's almost as bad as saying 'Nothing can go wrong,'" she grumbled.

Ryuuko raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that Hiyori?"

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxc

_I'm sorry, sempai's, I really am! But it's just to good!_ Hiyori screamed in her head, as her favorite mechanical pencil flew across the page, ideas pouring out. The thought of a hidden romance, between two lovers trapped in relationships in which they recieved no fulfillment, now free to express themselves, and the love they shared. Of course, Hiyori knew there was no such thing, but she had a tendency to ignore reality outright when it came to a good story.

It wasn't until her light source diminished noticeably that she was aware of someone standing over her. Snapping her book shut instinctively, she looked up with wary curiosity. Then she noticed Ryuuko and Kagami standing over her. "Gack! What are you two doing here? I mean, what's up?" she followed up weakly, trying to calm herself down. _They must not see inside this notebook, at all costs!_

Ryuuko raised an eyebrow. "What's got you wound so tight? It looked like you were having some great plot ideas, I know you've been having-" he stopped short, seeing the notebook in her hand."Hiyori," he said quietly. "Why do you have the red book with you?" He grimaced, glancing sideways at what he knew to be Tamura-san's H-plot book.

Hiyori jumped. _How does he know about that?_ "Um, I'm not sure what you mean. It's just a red notebook, that's all. I needed something to write on." She tried shoving the notebook in her bag, but Ryuuko snatched it up.

Holding it above his head, he shook his head slightly. "Now, Hiyorin, I know full well what's in this book. You know I don't mind any of it, but I just want to make sure you're not writing about people you're not supposed to. I don't have to look inside this, do I?"

Hiyori shook her head vigorously. "No, no, no, of course not! I would never do something like that!" she assured him, but the blush on her face said otherwise. He acquiesced, however, and hander her book back.

Of course, Hiyori being who she is, her hands trembled slightly when she reached to take it, and as a result, knocked it to the ground. She scurried to pick it up, but not before Ryuuko and Kagami both recognized their names in her handwriting. The twintailed girl also picked out a few choice words she recognized from books Konata had made her read. "Hey, Tamura-san!" she barked.

It was too late. Hiyorin had scooped up the notebook, and had taken off down the street. "I'm sorry!"

Ryuuko and Kagami exchanged glances. "This can't be good,": they said in unison.

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxc

The rest of their weekend having gone about the way he expected, the youngest Ryuosen sat himself down with his guitar one last time before he went to bed that night. "Great," he muttered to himself. "Thanks to Hiyorin's stupid redbook, all I can think of now is love song lyrics. Freaking awesome," he grumbled. He shuffled through some songs on his mp3 player, and sat back, mumbling to himself as he cycled through his usual playlist. He had collected some new songs to work with, and was eager to play them out.

He stopped the song mid-lyric as he heard a knock on his door. "Yeah, what's up?" he called out.

Shiki poked her head into the room. "Hey, just saying goodnight. Wanted to see what all you two were able to get done this time around. I've mostly just been dropping you places, and we haven't had much time to talk," she explained, taking a seat on his bed. She surveyed his surroundings. "Hmm, guitar and mp3 player. I thought you were trying _not _to do fandubs anymore."

He shrugged. "Eh, I might as well. I'm not horrible at it. And it's a good way to pass time," he picked a couple strings as he spoke, shuffling his guitar into a more comfortable position.

"So, what all do you guys have going?"

He shrugged. "Not much. I mean, we've got driver's ed on Fridays, so that's going to be fun," he left no note of sarcasm unsung.

"Either of you get a job?"

Again, a shrug. "I've got an interview after shool on Wednesday, and Kagami's got one the day after. It's for a small family restaurant downtown. Kagami's applying as a waitress, and I'm applying as host."

Shiki mulled it over a bit. "Yeah, that sounds doable," she said, then noticed something. "I see you didn't get your hair cut after all."

Ryuuko shook his head. "Too much trouble. Every time I brought it up, Kagami either ignored me, or just redirected us entirely. I'm almost suspecting you of paying her off."

His older sister grinned, but said nothing on the matter. "So, go ahead. Let's hear your next big hit," she coaxed.

He raised an eyebrow. "You never want to listen to my music. What's up?"

"Hey, I don't have to be mean to you all the time, do I?" she grumbled. "Besides, it's not like you don't have enough going on, I could at least _try_ to be nicer to you," she added quietly.

He chuckled to himself, knwoing full well that she could be supportive when she wanted to. She waited patiently while he spent some time on each song, swaying back and forth a bit, until he settled on one. She watched as he picked at his guitar, sung to himself, picked his guitar again. _He really does look in his element with that thing in his hands,_ she thought to himself. She was about to say something along those lines, when he started in:

"_As i wipe the whiteboard clean, i see my name_

_written just beneath yours in a heart_

_as the pieces fall into place, i see the truth_

_that i'm the real reason that we've been apart_

_lesson one, it's done, i can't ignore it anymore_

_all these signs, i'm blind, i can't believe i didn't see_

_lesson two, it's you, the one who makes my heart feel sore_

_cause you're the one that belongs to me_

_i know it's right, i'll fight, for all the ones i love_

_i see the light, it's bright, it shines from up above_

_and even though, i know, you've been here all along_

_i don't know how, but now, i see the truth, i'll be right here with you_

_and don't ask me to leave, i'll stay and say no thank you_

_i notice something as i'm cleaning up the room_

_it's a letter to me from you; i'm a fool_

_it was written more than weeks ago, now i know_

_i don't know just how you've kept your cool_

_lesson three, i'm free, i have the chance to speak my mind_

_and i know, you'll go, the distance to meet in between_

_lesson four, the door, closes to what i've left behind_

_after all this time i know what you mean_

_i've been so blind, unkind, in leaving you alone_

_i've rearranged, i've changed, and now i'm lying prone_

_my heart is open now, handle with care, cause now i'm lying bare_

_don't you turn away, and say to me no thank you_

_all the things that i should have seen_

_the times that i should have been aware_

_i'm sorry know that it took so long_

_but now that i can see the truth, i won't let go_

_lesson one, it's done, i can't ignore it anymore_

_all these signs, i'm blind, i can't believe i didn't see_

_lesson two, it's you, the one who makes my heart feel sore_

_cause you're the one that belongs to me_

_no thank you_

_i see the light, it's bright, it shines from up above_

_and even though, i know, you've been here all along_

_i don't know how, but now, i see the truth, i'll be right here with you_

_and don't ask me to leave, i'll stay and say no thank you."_

He wrapped up the song with the outro riff, and laid back against the bed. "I really need to spend more time on the guitar tabs, this isn't one of Yoko's easier songs," he chuckled to himself. He looked up at Shiki, who was smiling at him. "Well, what do you think?"

Shiki took a second to answer. "I think if you keep playing like that, and hold up this whole positive thing you're doing, that you should be fine. I can't imagine someone being so depressed when they have something they're good at that they can do every day."

He thought about that for a bit. "You know, that's a good point. It's got flaws, but it's good."

His older sister rolled her eyes. "So glad I could help. Anyway, make sure you have a good day tomorrow. Night," she added, closing the door.

"Night," he responded. "Yeah, I think tomorrow should be good."

xcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxcxc

_ Back in the classroom..._

"Or not," Ryuuko grumbled.

A/N: Well, another chapter done. It's been awhile since I've done a chapter with a fandub, but I think that's the last one I'm going to include. I want to put some original material in here before it's over. And we're only a few chapters away from that.


End file.
